“This crisis is deeply known within our First Nations, but the scale and visibility of this homelessness are unacceptable.”
-Grand Chief Jerry Daniels
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: August 28, 2025
ANISHINAABE AND DAKOTE TERRITORY, MB — Grand Chief Daniels is calling on all levels of government to immediately convene with First Nations leadership to co-create culturally grounded, long-lasting solutions in response to the “Street Census 2024” report released by End Homelessness Winnipeg this week.
According to the report, Winnipeg is facing a humanitarian emergency. End Homelessness Winnipeg is documenting a staggering 2469 people experiencing homelessness in the city, which is the highest count since tracking began in 2015.
Equally alarming is the overrepresentation of Indigenous peoples in these statistics: nearly 80 per cent of those unhoused identify as Indigenous, underscoring the disproportionate burden borne by First Nations citizens.
“This crisis is deeply known within our First Nations,” said Grand Chief Jerry Daniels. “But the scale and visibility of this homelessness is unacceptable. The systemic failures that have pushed our citizens onto the streets of their own homeland must be acknowledged and dismantled.”
The findings go beyond numbers: They reflect generations of colonial policies, chronic underfunding of First Nations housing, and trauma and displacement caused by the child welfare system.
“Our Nations are prepared to lead. What we need is investment in First Nations-led housing, healing, mental health supports, and approaches that respect our Treaty rights and lived realities,” Grand Chief Daniels said.
The Southern Chiefs’ Organization emphasizes that the path to ending homelessness in Winnipeg must be comprehensive. It cannot stop at emergency shelter, but must pave a path toward sustainable housing, mental health care, substance misuse treatment, and dignified and cultural opportunities.
“We must move beyond temporary fixes,” Daniels added. “Ending this crisis demands centering First Nations voices, fully respecting our jurisdiction, and collaborating in genuine partnership. Each day we delay, more lives are placed at risk.”
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The Southern Chiefs’ Organization represents 32 First Nations and more than 87,000 citizens in what is now called southern Manitoba. SCO is an independent political organization that protects, preserves, promotes, and enhances First Nations peoples’ inherent rights, languages, customs, and traditions through the application and implementation of the spirit and intent of the Treaty-making process.
For media inquiries:
Email: Media@scoinc.mb.ca