Research highlights alarming rates of sexual abuse among Indigenous Canadian children

A study led by Simon Fraser University criminology researchers has found that rates of child sexual abuse (CSA) among Indigenous Canadians surveyed were three to five times higher than global estimates, while those with parents or family members who attended residential schools are at significantly greater risk of experiencing CSA. Content warning: mention of residential schools and sexual abuse. Resources for residential school survivors can be found here . Resources for sexual assault survivors and their loved ones can be found here . SFU researchers Maaike Helmus and Ashley Kyne, whose research is published in the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health , found that according to the surveyed experiences of 282 Indigenous Canadians across the country, CSA was reported by 35 per cent of males, 50 per cent of females, and 57 per cent of transgender and gender non-conforming participants. The rates are drastically higher than global meta-analytic estimates which report that 7.6 per cent of boys and 18 per cent of girls on average experience sexual abuse as children. Their recommendations include the need for more trauma-informed services to address the lasting harms of colonization, in line with recommendations from Canada's Truth and Reconciliation Commission.