Imprisonment. Lack of culturally appropriate access to health services and resulting poor health. Poverty.
Each of these factors increases a person’s risk of contracting HIV — and in Canada, Indigenous people suffer disproportionately from all of them.
We’ve collaborated with Indigenous organizations across the country since 2001 to respond to HIV on two fronts:
- in marginalized populations in which Indigenous people are overrepresented, such as prisoners and drug users, and
- in Indigenous communities, where discrimination, inadequate funding and inconsistent quality of HIV programs and services all remain problematic.
Resources
Know Your Rights – A Guide for Indigenous Women Living with HIV and Affected by Intimate Partner Violence
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Know Your Rights: on drug laws for Indigenous people who use drugs
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HIV Criminalization – Information for Indigenous Communities
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Good Samaritan Drug Overdose Act – Information for Indigenous Communities
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Hard Time Persists: Healthcare and Harm Reduction for Indigenous People in Prison
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Know Your Rights – Indigenous communities: HIV, privacy, and confidentiality
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Know Your Rights: Indigenous Communities and HIV/HCV in federal prisons
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Policy Brief on HIV, Hepatitis C, And Stbbis Among Indigenous People
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UNDRIP Action Plan – CAAN & the HIV Legal Network
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Not A Crime – Indigenous Perspectives on HIV Criminalization – Margaret Kisikaw Piyesis
Over the next few weeks, we will be sharing conversations we have had in recent months with people from Indigenous communities about the impact of HIV criminalization. In Canada, Indigenous people, especially women and youth, are disproportionately affected by HIV. Even though Indigenous people are only 5% of the total population, studies from 2020 that … Read more
INDIGENOUS COMMUNITY DIALOGUES SUMMARY REPORT – OTHER MAJOR FINDINGS
This summary report presents important findings from six Indigenous community dialogues conducted across Canada from 2023-2025. The dialogues were organized by the HIV Legal Network and CAAN Communities, Alliances & Networks as part of a broader project examining Indigenous Peoples’ lived experiences with HIV, hepatitis C (HCV), and other sexually transmitted and blood-borne infections (STBBIs).
INDIGENOUS COMMUNITY DIALOGUES SUMMARY REPORT – SEX WORK
This summary report presents findings related to sex work from six Indigenous community dialogues conducted across Canada from 2023-2025. The dialogues were organized by the HIV Legal Network and CAAN Communities, Alliances & Networks as part of a broader project examining Indigenous Peoples’ lived experiences with HIV, hepatitis C (HCV), and other sexually transmitted and … Read more
INDIGENOUS COMMUNITY DIALOGUES SUMMARY REPORT – PRISONS
This summary report presents findings related to prisons from six Indigenous community dialogues conducted across Canada from 2023-2025. The dialogues were organized by the HIV Legal Network and CAAN Communities, Alliances & Networks as part of a broader project examining Indigenous Peoples’ lived experiences with HIV, hepatitis C (HCV), and other sexually transmitted and blood-borne … Read more
INDIGENOUS COMMUNITY DIALOGUES SUMMARY REPORT – DRUG POLICY
This summary report presents findings related to drug policy from six Indigenous community dialogues conducted across Canada from 2023-2025. The dialogues were organized by the HIV Legal Network and CAAN Communities, Alliances & Networks as part of a broader project examining Indigenous Peoples’ lived experiences with HIV, hepatitis C (HCV), and other sexually transmitted and … Read more
HIV, Hepatitis C and Sexually Transmitted and Blood-Borne Infections in Canada: Top Election 2021 Issues
Joint press release: HIV, Hepatitis C and Sexually Transmitted and Blood-Borne Infections in Canada: Top Election 2021 Issues Health and human rights groups identify priorities for federal policymakers as people in Canada head to the polls Tuesday, September 14, 2021 – More than 60,000 people are currently living with HIV in Canada, approximately 13% of … Read more