The BC Nurses’ Union (BCNU) recognizes that colonization, racism and systemic discrimination have profoundly impacted the lives of Indigenous peoples and their ability to access holistic, culturally safe health care. The recent publication of In Plain Sight: Addressing Indigenous-specific Racism and Discrimination in B.C. Health Care has merely confirmed that these factors remain endemic to our care systems, while reminding us of the work that must be done to remedy the many harms done to Indigenous people.
To this end, BCNU is committed to fostering Indigenous cultural safety, through cultural humility, and eliminating Indigenous-specific racism throughout our organization. Our commitment is framed through an ongoing undertaking to establish a genuine and just process of reconciliation with Indigenous peoples.
One aspect of this commitment is the establishment of a $1,500 bursary to be awarded annually to an Indigenous student enrolled in a post-secondary nursing program in British Columbia.
The BCNU Provincial Indigenous Student Nurse Bursary is an initiative of BCNU’s Indigenous Leadership Circle and reflects the Union’s support for the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada’s 94 Calls to Action, and in particular, the call to increase the number of Indigenous professionals in health care.
The bursary recipient will be announced on National Indigenous Nurses Day, which is commemorated during National Nurses Week, May 10-16, 2021.
As we strive to create a more equitable union, we will continue to draw on the expert knowledge of Indigenous members – nurses and health care workers – to help inform the actions we must take and the paths we must pursue. BCNU is committed to ending racism and discrimination wherever it is encountered. We recognize that this work must be ongoing—within the union as well as in our workplaces and our communities.
Christine Sorensen
President, BC Nurses’ Union
