E-petitions to the House of Commons

Misinformation that denies or distorts the history and harms of the residential school system continues to retraumatize Survivors and their families and contributes to rising anti Indigenous hate in Canada;

Protecting Indigenous peoples from hate-based misinformation aligns with Canada’s commitments to reconciliation and with the National Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s Calls to Action;

The federal government has a responsibility to protect Indigenous peoples from hate and the incitement of violence, and has the authority to prevent the promotion of hatred against identifiable groups through the Criminal Code;

Bill C-254, introduced by MP Leah Gazan in the House of Commons on October 31, 2025, would amend the Criminal Code to create an offence of wilfully promoting hatred against Indigenous peoples by condoning, denying, downplaying, or justifying the Indian Residential School system in public statements.

We, the undersigned,residents of Canada, call upon theGovernment of Canadato:1. Support and advance Bill C-254 through all stages of the legislative process and pass it into law; 1. Support and advance Bill C-254 through all stages of the legislative process and pass it into law; 2. Affirm the federal government’s obligation to combat anti Indigenous hate, including public denial or distortion of the residential school system; and 3. Ensure adequate resources for public education, Survivor led initiatives, and community based responses to residential school denialism and anti Indigenous hate.

Millions of Canadians continue to face financial barriers when seeking counselling, psychotherapy, addictions treatment, and other community-based mental health services;

Nearly one in five Canadians experiences a mental health problem or illness each year, and about half of Canadians will experience mental illness by age 40;

Canadians are too often forced to pay out of pocket, rely on inadequate private insurance, endure lengthy wait times, seek help only in crisis through emergency departments, or go without care altogether;

The human and economic costs of untreated mental illness are profound, placing growing pressure on hospitals, first responders, families, workplaces, and communities, while costing Canada’s economy billions of dollars annually;

Evidence shows that investing in timely, community-based mental health care improves outcomes, reduces long-term costs, and strengthens the sustainability of our public healthcare system; and

Canadians overwhelmingly support universal access to mental health care and have called for mental health to be treated with the same importance as physical health.

We, the undersigned,citizens and residents of Canada, call upon theGovernment of Canadato:1. Work with provinces, territories, Indigenous partners, healthcare professionals, people with lived and living experience, and community organizations to establish parity between mental and physical health in Canada’s universal healthcare system; 1. Work with provinces, territories, Indigenous partners, healthcare professionals, people with lived and living experience, and community organizations to establish parity between mental and physical health in Canada’s universal healthcare system; 2. Provide stable, long-term federal funding to expand access to medically necessary mental health, addictions, and substance use services in every region of the country; and 3. Pass Bill C-280, the Mental Health Parity Act, to create a national framework that ensures Canadians can access medically necessary mental health, addictions, and substance use care based on need, not their ability to pay or where they live.

The Maritime Provinces Fishery Regulations (SOR/93-55) govern fishing in Nova Scotia and adjacent tidal waters;

Those federal regulations already recognize spears as a lawful recreational fishing method for certain species, including eel, smelt and tomcod;

Recreational spearfishing is the most sustainable fishing method, as it allows the fisher to identify the individual healthy fish before harvesting it, and thus inherently creates virtually no litter, bycatch, or unnecessary harm to the environment when regulated properly;

Spearfishing is permitted as a regulated recreational fishing method in other Canadian provinces and jurisdictions; and

Maritimers should have access to recreational fishing methods that can be appropriately managed while maintaining existing conservation objectives, seasons, size limits and catch limits.

We, the undersigned,citizens and residents of Canada, call upon theGovernment of Canadato:1. Amend the Maritime Provinces Fishery Regulations and/or the Atlantic Fishery Regulations to establish recreational breath-hold (freedive) spearfishing as a permitted fishing method in the tidal waters of the Maritime Provinces, including both near shore and offshore, for the same species’ that angling is permitted for, subject to appropriate species-specific seasons, size limits, catch limits, conservation closures, safety considerations, and other measures deemed necessary by Fisheries and Oceans Canada; and 2. Consult with local recreational fishers, commercial fishers, spearfishers, First Nation communities, conservation organizations, and other affected stakeholders when developing the regulatory framework for recreational spearfishing.

The Government of Canada is legally obligated under the 2021 Safe Drinking Water for First Nations class action settlement agreement to introduce legislation that upholds First Nations’ equal right to clean, safe drinking water;

The Liberal government’s Bill C-37, the First Nations Clean Water Act, falls significantly short of this legal obligation, failing to recognize the human right of all First Nations individuals to clean drinking water;

Bill C-37 limits First Nations’ jurisdiction and authority over water to RESERVE LANDS ONLY, excluding lands over which Aboriginal title is claimed by a First Nation, or has been confirmed by a court;

The Liberals have excluded Article 25 of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples from Bill C-37 to bypass First Nations’ rights in Modern Treaties and in traditional lands and territories; and

Just like in Bill C-5, Bill C-37 is part of a broader trend of the Carney Liberal government repeatedly violating Indigenous Constitutional and Treaty rights and ignoring their duty to consult and obtain the free, prior and informed consent of Indigenous Peoples.

We, the undersigned,residents of Canada and First Nations,, call upon theGovernment of Canadato amend Bill C-37 to recognize the human right of all First Nations individuals to clean drinking water, to be compliant with ALL articles of UNDRIP, and to commit sufficient funding to ensure the right to clean water is upheld in practice.