Jennifer Meixner，©Uwinnipeg
根据加拿大司法部的说法，在加拿大的刑事司法系统中，土著人民在加拿大的刑事司法系统中占有人数。
Social worker Jennifer Meixner was working with the Contemporary Criminal Justice System (CJS) for 10 years and realized these statistics first hand. She also recognized the system was not working for Indigenous people.
这导致了她的停顿，批判性地思考了她在系统中的作用，以及如何帮助找到改进的解决方案。Meixner认识到CJS的局限性及其无法纠正土著人民的过分代表。
这个想法-去授权刑事司法的观点：曼尼托巴省土著创新的作用- 现在，她是她在Uwinnipeg的土著治理硕士学位的基础，在Shailesh Shukla博士（本地研究）的监督下，并得到了Uwinnipeg全球全球学院的Marsha Hanen全球对话和伦理学奖的部分支持。
Meixner想探索替代方法nd find solutions. Meixner, who is Métis, engaged the community at the grassroots level. She began her journey with Elders in the community to help direct her research and respectfully engage with the community. She explains, “I needed guidance because it wasn’t my experience. I didn’t know how to navigate within the community.”
从长老中，梅克斯纳很快就了解了她的研究是在殖民地背景下进行的，她需要将问题和解决方案转移到土著观点上。通过她的研究，梅克纳（Meixner）发现，在当地的社区基层层面上，已经有个人和社区倡议将土著知识和价值观付亚愽娱乐app诸行动，以解决诸如暴力，犯罪和安全等社会问题。
“我也敏锐地意识到庆祝和认可社区领袖，成员和组织为社区中社会正义的贡献的重要性，”梅克斯纳（Meixner）说。亚愽娱乐app
Dr. Shailesh Shukla, ©UWinnipeg, Cory Aronec Photography
她对土著社区领导人和组织进行了个人采访，以及两个会话圈子 - 一个与土著人一起经历了与法律发生冲突的土著亚愽娱乐app人，第二个是刑事司法系统的前一线雇员土著。
“Jennifer’s community-based action research underscores the potential of Indigenous wisdom and perspectives in informing and transforming criminal justice system outcomes in Manitoba, and hopes to inspire research to examine contributions of Indigenous wisdom-led innovations in other disciplines, including sciences,” said Shukla.
Meixner recently presented her findings at a community gathering held at the Indian & Metis Friendship Centre. Mobilizing Dialogue on Criminal Justice Interventions and the Roles of Indigenous Innovations in Manitoba included Elders, community leaders, and the community — with the purpose to engage in a meaningful dialogue, contributing insights, and connecting with like-minded change makers.
梅克斯纳（Mexiner）的观察指出，缺乏对当地土著创新的学术理解，这意味着基于土著思想和基于社区的改善行动，以基于土著知识。亚愽娱乐app这项相关的工作已经在社区的前线上实践，但并未因其与识别和产生积极的刑事司法结果的关系而被认可。
“Indigenous innovation is a revival of traditional teachings and an implementation in a modern context of traditional teachings,” explains Michael Champagne, a community leader that Meixner has engaged in the conversation. “As the definition of innovation implies something new, I would argue that majority of the quote on quote, innovative practice, we see happening in 2018 related to the justice system, especially the justice system being led by Indigenous people, is simply revival of traditional teachings as opposed to anything at all that is new.”
其他发现包括种族主义在CJS中起着重要作用。这是CJS对土著人民的有效性的重大障碍 - 这在这项研究中得到了证实，并由社区领导人（创新者）以及两个会话圈子所揭示。亚愽娱乐app这证实了先前的发现。
但更重要的是，尽管通过整合土著创新，例如传统的康复以及在CJS中的土著文化和灵性的实施，但尚未忽略和/或忽略它们，尽管有许多报告和建议来改善系统。
Meixner found participants of the study are not satisfied with the lack of response from the government to correct the injustices inherent in the criminal justice system. They talked about wanting self-determination as it relates to justice; their respective community’s own restorative justice models, responsibility for Gladue reports, community involvement in sentencing, and more culturally specific programming that is supported equally to western programming, language, and land-based programs.
Many of the Indigenous innovations (community-led action) happening right now was initiated in response to a system that continues to perpetuate the colonialism “we’re tired of waiting, so we will do it ourselves” and/or a process of reclaiming power.
但是，有希望。这项研究只是为了找到基于研究，测试结果的土著创新和社区参与的解决方案的开始。亚愽娱乐app
梅克斯纳（Meixner）表示：“我们现在正在种植种子，以继续建立在社区中现有的积极网络上。”亚愽娱乐app“我们需要建立克服障碍的策略。我们需要增强人民的能力。”
