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Muskoka Meeting Invitation

November 3, 2010 permalink

The press announces the upcoming meeting called by the Citizen’s Committee for Fairness in Ontario Courts (Muskoka) taking place in Huntsville on November 8. Doors open at 5:30 pm for refreshments, the presentations start at 7 pm. Refer to Canada Court Watch flyer (pdf) or our earlier article for details.

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Children’s aid societies to be focus of public meeting

HUNTSVILLE – While children’s aid societies are important there are some things that need to change, says critic Vern Beck.

Beck is one of the organizers of a public meeting that will discuss what he and others, critical of the way children’s aid societies are run in the province, consider problems inherent with the organizations. The meeting will be held in Huntsville on Nov. 8 and will include guest speakers such as a former children’s aid society board member, a former Ontario Provincial Police officer and a teenager with experience regarding the society.

“I’m going to be one of the key guest speakers there to address the people about some of the problems with their children’s aid society and with the Children’s Aid Society in general,” said Beck.

Beck said his parents acted as foster parents for 30 years for children who were in the care of a children’s aid agency in the province. He said his parents provided a safe home but he remembered some of the foster children telling stories about the “horrific” things they had been subjected to in foster homes.

“There are definitely good experiences but unfortunately there are too many bad experiences out there for kids and for families,” he said.

For the past 15 years, said Beck, he has been investigating what he calls the abuses of various children’s aid societies through his work with Canada Court Watch, a non-profit organization asking for greater accountability and transparency for children’s aid societies throughout Ontario.

Canada Court Watch was one of the groups involved in two rallies held in Huntsville as part of a province-wide “movement for accountability,” said Beck. Several other grass roots groups have also come to support each other during the rallies, he said.

The group hosting the public meeting is the Citizen’s Committee for Fairness in Ontario Courts (Muskoka) and it includes several community members who have similar concerns about the area’s children’s aid agency called Family, Youth and Child Services of Muskoka.

Topics at the meeting will include Muskoka-based concerns as well as issues surrounding the “abuse of tax dollars by child protection agencies and the family courts,” states a media release.

Beck said the movement, rallies and meeting are not about abolishing children’s aid agencies but are instead about increasing their transparency and accountability to those they serve.

“We need that organ of society to protect vulnerable children. There’s no doubt about that. We need a children’s aid agency. But it’s not about whether we need them or not. What this effort is about is we’re trying to promote accountability,” he said.

While not every child and family has had bad experiences with these agencies, said Beck, the movement is about supporting those who have and safeguarding others in the future.

The public meeting will take place Monday, Nov. 8 at 7 p.m. at the legion, 21 Veteran’s Way, Huntsville. Doors open at 5:30 p.m. for refreshments. Parking is available.

A question and answer period will follow the presentation by guest speakers.

Source: Cottage Country Now

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