ATTAWAPISKAT – This has been a worrisome month. After a year and a half of dealing with the Covid-19 pandemic, like everyone else I was hoping that things would be getting more back to normal after our world more or less was shut down. In many countries in the world the numbers of deaths and cases have been dropping and just when things were looking good for us here in northern Ontario, the Porcupine Health Unit area had increased cases and in particular my home of Attawapiskat, the remote communities of Kashechewan, Fort Albany, Moosonee and Moose Factory on the James Bay coast all had outbreaks.
We have been fortunate in northern Ontario that our infection numbers have been low until just recently. Most of this has been due to the fact that we are more remote and rural so that protects us to a degree. However, with people moving about, air travel and work places deemed essential still operating this virus took hold. There were not many deaths or severe cases of sickness along the James Bay coast and in other Indigenous communities across Canada because these First Nations had been prioritized for vaccinations. Many people don’t realize that the vaccines won’t stop you from getting the virus but it will in most cases lower the cases of severe disease and deaths. That is why it is necessary to get fully vaccinated as soon as possible. Can you imagine the disaster this virus would have created in sickness and death in remote James Bay communities without vaccines?
As vaccines continue to roll out in Canada we are seeing a decrease in cases and deaths in general. However, things are starting to open up now and there is a fear that we might not be out of the woods with this virus for some time. There are new variants like the Delta Variant that is challenging the vaccines and the experts say there will be more more variants developing. This means we will probably need booster vaccine shots at some point to deal with new variants.
It looks like vaccines will most likely not be able to solve this pandemic globally but they will help us manage it in countries and regions. First world countries that have the most vaccinations will probably manage well in opening up to some form of normal over the next year or so but many parts of the world will not be able to do that. That means we won’t really be safe from this virus because people will move about internationally and this Covid-19 will continue to spread as newly developed variants.
The bottom line is that we are living in a new world. We have learned so much about viruses and disease in general over the past year and a half and that has kept many of us safe. Many people have had to keep working in close quarters in plants, mines, production and distribution centres and essential services. Our governments and public health units have developed many ways to deal with this virus. We now know our best protection has been with the wearing of masks indoors in public places, staying two meters apart from others and washing hands often.
As things open up and new variants arrive we still need to remember that, yes we can have more freedom, we can get together safely and we can even begin to travel again. However, we also have to remember all the things we learned to cope with this virus and the new way we see and understand disease and how it spreads.
Vaccines have been proven to work and although they might not solve this pandemic on a global basis, they will allow us to manage life in many parts of the world. I am very thankful to the Indigenous leadership at the Assembly of First Nations (AFN), Chiefs of Ontario (COO), Nishnawbe-Aski Nation (NAN), our tribal councils and Indigenous political bodies across Canada for doing such a great job to lobby the governments so that our communities were prioritized for vaccines. Right now I can point to the success of that advocacy in the outbreaks that were safely managed on the James Bay coast. Thanks also to the federal government, provincial governments, public health units and all those doctors, nurses, paramedics, personal support workers, teachers, as well as all essential workers for risking their well being to keep us all safe and for propping up our economy. Things are looking better every day and we will manage this nasty Covid-19 virus. We all have to remember what we learned over the past year and a half to stay safe.
