{"id":119913,"date":"2026-09-28T08:00:00","date_gmt":"2026-09-28T12:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lakaymedia.org\/?p=119913"},"modified":"2026-09-28T11:56:52","modified_gmt":"2026-09-28T15:56:52","slug":"joyce-echaquan-six-ans-racisme-systemique-solidarite-manawan","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lakaymedia.org\/en\/joyce-echaquan-six-ans-racisme-systemique-solidarite-manawan\/","title":{"rendered":"Six years after Joyce Echaquan&#039;s death, LAKAY denounces systemic racism and reaffirms its solidarity with First Nations."},"content":{"rendered":"<section class=\"wpb-content-wrapper\"><div data-parent=\"true\" class=\"vc_row row-container\" id=\"row-unique-0\"><div class=\"row limit-width row-parent\"><div class=\"wpb_row row-inner\"><div class=\"wpb_column pos-top pos-center align_left column_parent col-lg-12 single-internal-gutter\"><div class=\"uncol style-light\"  ><div class=\"uncoltable\"><div class=\"uncell no-block-padding\" ><div class=\"uncont\"><div class=\"uncode_text_column\" ><p><strong>PRESS RELEASE \u2014 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><em>September 28: Anniversary of Joyce Echaquan&#039;s death \u2022 September 30: National Day of Truth and Reconciliation<\/em><\/p>\n<p><strong>Repentigny, September 28, 2026<\/strong> \u2014 On this sixth anniversary of Joyce Echaquan\u2019s death and as we approach National Truth and Reconciliation Day, LAKAY bows before the memory of this Atikamekw mother from Manawan and joins its voice to those of the First Nations to demand, once again, that the systemic racism of which Indigenous peoples are victims in Quebec cease.<\/p>\n<p>On September 28, 2020, Joyce Echaquan, 37, a mother of seven, died at the Joliette Hospital, right here in Lanaudi\u00e8re, after live-streaming the racist insults hurled at her by the staff caring for her. In her 2021 report, coroner G\u00e9hane Kamel concluded that the racism and prejudice experienced by Ms. Echaquan contributed to her death. Joyce was not the victim of a simple individual lapse in judgment; she was a victim of a system that, for far too long, has treated Indigenous people as second-class citizens.<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>\u00abJoyce had the courage to show the world what so many others experience in silence. Six years later, refusing to name systemic racism is refusing to fight it. We say it clearly: systemic racism exists, it hurts and it kills,\u00bb says Pierre Richard Thomas, director of LAKAY.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<h2>Joyce&#039;s Principle: A Duty to Act<\/h2>\n<p>Developed by the Atikamekw Council of Manawan and the Atikamekw Nation Council, Joyce&#039;s Principle aims to guarantee all Indigenous people equitable and non-discriminatory access to social and health services. Several professional orders and institutions have adopted it, but the Quebec government has still not endorsed it, notably because one of its foundations is the recognition of systemic racism. With the general election just days away on October 5, LAKAY is asking:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>to the Quebec government and all political parties to recognize the existence of systemic racism and to commit to adopting and applying the Joyce Principle; ;<\/li>\n<li>to the health and social services network, particularly in Lanaudi\u00e8re, to offer mandatory training in cultural safety designed with First Nations; ;<\/li>\n<li>to governments to fully implement the Calls to Action of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada and the recommendations of the Viens Commission.<\/li>\n<li>to all political parties to commit to conducting a public inquiry into racial profiling within certain police services in Quebec, including Montreal and Repentigny.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2>National Day of Truth and Reconciliation<\/h2>\n<p>September 30th, National Truth and Reconciliation Day honours missing and deceased children and survivors of residential schools, as well as their families and communities. For LAKAY, reconciliation cannot be limited to commemorations: it requires truth about the injustices of yesterday and today, and concrete actions.<\/p>\n<p>It is in this spirit that LAKAY accompanied, on the 1st<sup>er<\/sup> Last August, a delegation of approximately 150 members of the Black community visited Manawan for a day of cultural exchange with the Atikamekw Nation. This meeting confirmed what our communities already know: Black communities and First Nations share the experience of profiling, discrimination, and barriers to accessing services. Our struggles are intertwined, and so is our solidarity.<\/p>\n<p>LAKAY invites the residents of Repentigny and Lanaudi\u00e8re to wear orange shirts on September 30, to participate in the commemorative activities organized by First Nations, and to learn about Joyce&#039;s Principle. Our thoughts are with Joyce Echaquan&#039;s family, her children, and the entire community of Manawan.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\">-30-<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p><em>Also read: <a href=\"https:\/\/lakaymedia.org\/en\/une-visite-de-solidarite-couronnee-de-succes-entre-la-communaute-noire-et-la-nation-atikamekw-de-manawan\/\">A successful solidarity visit between the Black community and the Atikamekw Nation of Manawan<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n<h3>About LAKAY<\/h3>\n<p>LAKAY (Chez Nous M\u00e9dia 2007) is a non-profit organization in Repentigny that defends and promotes the rights and interests of members of cultural communities, particularly in the Lanaudi\u00e8re region, by raising their awareness of issues related to access to services, safety, socioeconomic conditions, and representation. The organization fosters inclusion, tolerance, and intercultural understanding through inclusive activities and programs.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><script id=\"script-row-unique-0\" data-row=\"script-row-unique-0\" type=\"text\/javascript\" class=\"vc_controls\">UNCODE.initRow(document.getElementById(\"row-unique-0\"));<\/script><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n<\/section>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Six ans apr\u00e8s la mort de Joyce Echaquan \u00e0 l&rsquo;h\u00f4pital de Joliette, LAKAY exige la reconnaissance du racisme syst\u00e9mique et l&rsquo;adoption du Principe de Joyce, et r\u00e9affirme sa solidarit\u00e9 avec la communaut\u00e9 atikamekw de Manawan.<\/p>","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":119922,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_price":"","_stock":"","_tribe_ticket_header":"","_tribe_default_ticket_provider":"","_tribe_ticket_capacity":"","_ticket_start_date":"","_ticket_end_date":"","_tribe_ticket_show_description":"","_tribe_ticket_show_not_going":false,"_tribe_ticket_use_global_stock":"","_tribe_ticket_global_stock_level":"","_global_stock_mode":"","_global_stock_cap":"","_tribe_rsvp_for_event":"","_tribe_ticket_going_count":"","_tribe_ticket_not_going_count":"","_tribe_tickets_list":"[]","_tribe_ticket_has_attendee_info_fields":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1,34,35],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-119913","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-actualites","category-communiques","category-racisme-profilage-racial"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lakaymedia.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/119913","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lakaymedia.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lakaymedia.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lakaymedia.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lakaymedia.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=119913"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/lakaymedia.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/119913\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":119923,"href":"https:\/\/lakaymedia.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/119913\/revisions\/119923"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lakaymedia.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/119922"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lakaymedia.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=119913"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lakaymedia.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=119913"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lakaymedia.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=119913"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}