• An indigenous woman in Canada died Monday shortly after live-streaming a video that showed her hospital nurses calling her “stupid” and slut-shaming her.
• The death of that woman, Joyce Echaquan, has increased calls to address systemic racism against indigenous people in the country.
• One nurse in the video has been fired and two investigations are underway, but so far, no criminal investigation has been opened.

Woman Berated by Nurses in Livestream

A Canadian woman has gone viral for live-streaming an incident where she’s seen being berated by two nurses who are supposed to be treating her.

Shortly after filming that seven-minute Facebook Live on Monday, 37-year-old Joyce Echaquan died.

Echaquan, an indigenous mother of seven, originally checked into a Quebec hospital on Monday after experiencing stomach pains.

In the video she captured just before her death, Echaquan’s nurses can be heard making derogatory comments to her in French. Both nurses remain off-camera during the live-stream.

“You’re stupid as hell,” one says. Another nurse tells Echaquan that she’d made bad life choices and asked what her children would think of her behavior. One of the nurses also says that Echquan was “only good for sex” and that they’d have to pay for her medical expenses as taxpayers.

All the while, Echaquen can be seen tied to a hospital bed, where she screams, begging for the nurses to stop.

Nurse Fired, Investigation Launched

On Tuesday, Quebec Premier François Legault, the head of government in the province, announced that one of the nurses heard in the video has since been fired. Legault additionally denounced the nurses’ remarks as “unacceptable” and “racist.” 

When asked if he believes if this was a situation that arose from systemic racism, Legault rejected that notion.

“I really don’t think we have this kind of way of dealing with First Nations people in our hospitals in Quebec,” he said.

While speaking to reporters, Legault said Echaquan’s death is now being investigated by regional health authorities, as well as by a forensic pathologist.

However, so far, no criminal investigation has been opened into her death. In fact, the Quebec police have said that much will hinge on the results of the autopsy.

Despite this, Echaquan’s family has accused the nurses of negligence. They believe those nurses gave Echaquan too much morphine, as Echaquan had a history of heart trouble. 

If it’s found that the two nurses in the video caused Echaquan’s death, the hospital would almost certainly face significant liability damages.

Indigenous People Receive Poorer Healthcare in Canada

Contrary to Legault, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau described the incident as “another example of systemic racism that is simply unacceptable in Canada.”

In recent years, Canada has grappled with racism directed toward its indigenous population.

In 2015, one report found that racism in Canada’s healthcare system contributed to overall poorer health outcomes for indigenous people.

Last year, a government inquiry found that Canada was complicit in “race-based genocide” against indigenous women. That inquiry determined that indigenous women are 12 times more likely to be killed or to disappear than non-indigenous women in Canada. 

In June, the province of British Columbia opened an investigation after it was found that healthcare staff in at least one hospital were betting on the blood alcohol levels of indigenous patients. 

“There needs to be a thorough police investigation and that investigation has to be full and professional and must include a full investigation of any criminal misconduct, whether partly or fully motivated by a hate crime,” Alisa Lombard, a partner with a law firm that’s currently representing two indigenous women in a forced sterilization lawsuit, said of Echaquan.

“Not undertaking this kind of investigation would be further demonstrative of the contempt held by the health-care providers for Indigenous people” Lombard added in an interview with CBC. “Joyce, when she was dying, was met with contempt. Their remarks show… hate and really clear racism.”

More People Speak Out About the Hospital

In the days since Echaquan’s death, more people have come forward with allegations against the hospital where she died. 

On Wednesday, Echaquan’s cousin, Karine Echaquan, told the Montreal Gazette that this wasn’t the first time Echaquan had experienced similar discrimination. According to Karine, Echaquan checked into the same hospital in August because of her heart condition.  

Karine added that Echaquan frequently live-streamed on Facebook while receiving care at the hospital because she worried about how she would be treated by staff.

“I think it was a sort of protection for her,” Karine said. “She was always suspicious of public health.”

That claim of similar discrimination was later corroborated by another woman, Jennifer Mac Donald.

Also speaking to the Gazette, Mac Donald said that in late August, she had rushed to the hospital to be with her father, who had been admitted following a heart attack. 

While in the hallway, Mac Donald said she could hear a woman screaming and expressing concerns over her care. Mac Donald went on to describe the attendants on duty as indifferent and even verbally aggressive, quoting one as saying of the woman, “Will she ever shut up?”

Mac Donald, an off-duty patient attendant, said she then tried to approach the woman to see if she needed help, but the staff told her to mind her own business. 

One month later, Mac Donald said she recognized Echaquan in her live stream as the same woman from that incident in August.

The full scope of systemic racism against indigenous people in Canadian hospitals extends well beyond just Echaquan’s experiences, though her experiences do seem to capture a microcosm of the inequities at play.

“Every time we have to bring someone to a hospital, we escort them, because we know that there will be racist comments toward them,” Nakuset, executive director of the Native Women’s Shelter of Montreal, told the Times Colonist. “We have a form because we anticipate what’s going to happen.” 

See what others are saying: (BBC) (CBC) (Montreal Gazette)