Road To Your Name - Season 6, Episode 10: A conversation with Kathy Neil, Deputy Commissioner for Indigenous Corrections
This episode was recorded in February of 2024. Kathy Neil was appointed the first Deputy Commissioner for Indigenous Corrections in May 2023.
Episode Summary:
In this powerful episode, host Lisa speaks with Kathy Neil, Métis from Prince Albert, Saskatchewan, who has spent nearly three decades working in corrections and now serves as the first Deputy Commissioner for Indigenous Corrections with Correctional Service of Canada (CSC). Kathy shares her journey through the prison system, the stark reality of Indigenous over-representation, and how she is working to reshape corrections through Indigenous-led solutions and cultural healing.
Episode Summary:
In this powerful episode, host Lisa speaks with Kathy Neil, Métis from Prince Albert, Saskatchewan, who has spent nearly three decades working in corrections and now serves as the first Deputy Commissioner for Indigenous Corrections with Correctional Service of Canada (CSC). Kathy shares her journey through the prison system, the stark reality of Indigenous over-representation, and how she is working to reshape corrections through Indigenous-led solutions and cultural healing.
In This Episode:
• Kathy’s career path: from correctional officer to penitentiary warden to Deputy Commissioner for Indigenous Corrections.
• The current state of Indigenous representation in federal corrections: approximately 32% of the population and around 33% admissions.
• Key priorities: Raising the voice of Elders and culturally-informed interventions within CSC.
• The role of Elders, knowledge-holders, and spiritual advisors in correctional facilities—how their cultural work must be better understood and respected.
• Indigenous-stream programming in correctional institutions, including trauma-informed care like horse-therapy, women’s healing lodges, and expanded mother-child programs recognizing extended-family relationships.
• The significance of Section 81 of the Corrections and Conditional Release Act: transferring supervision of federally-sentenced Indigenous persons to Indigenous community organizations, and the positive results of Healing Lodges.
• Challenges and opportunities in the role: policy updates, community engagement, recruiting Indigenous staff, and influencing outcomes for Indigenous offenders.
• Kathy’s motivation: influencing policy, creating choices for Indigenous people in the system, and working toward better outcomes.
• Kathy’s career path: from correctional officer to penitentiary warden to Deputy Commissioner for Indigenous Corrections.
• The current state of Indigenous representation in federal corrections: approximately 32% of the population and around 33% admissions.
• Key priorities: Raising the voice of Elders and culturally-informed interventions within CSC.
• The role of Elders, knowledge-holders, and spiritual advisors in correctional facilities—how their cultural work must be better understood and respected.
• Indigenous-stream programming in correctional institutions, including trauma-informed care like horse-therapy, women’s healing lodges, and expanded mother-child programs recognizing extended-family relationships.
• The significance of Section 81 of the Corrections and Conditional Release Act: transferring supervision of federally-sentenced Indigenous persons to Indigenous community organizations, and the positive results of Healing Lodges.
• Challenges and opportunities in the role: policy updates, community engagement, recruiting Indigenous staff, and influencing outcomes for Indigenous offenders.
• Kathy’s motivation: influencing policy, creating choices for Indigenous people in the system, and working toward better outcomes.
Key Quotes:
“The over-representation of Indigenous people in the justice system is really a reflection of the systemic disparities that all levels of government have to work to fix.”“We need to continue to raise the understanding of those cultural activities and the importance of those activities.”“I really do feel like I’m in a time and space where people are open to new approaches.”
Connect with Kathy Neil:
(As a senior executive public-servant, direct social media links are not listed; interview conducted by Aboriginal Legal Services)
(As a senior executive public-servant, direct social media links are not listed; interview conducted by Aboriginal Legal Services)
About the Show:
The Road to Your Name explores Indigenous voices reclaiming identity, purpose, and community leadership. Each episode delves into how tradition, culture, and systemic change intersect on the journey forward.
The Road to Your Name explores Indigenous voices reclaiming identity, purpose, and community leadership. Each episode delves into how tradition, culture, and systemic change intersect on the journey forward.
Follow the show for more conversations like this one.
Creators and Guests
Host
Lisa VanEvery
Lisa has worked for Aboriginal Legal Services for fifteen years. She began hosting the Road To Your Name Podcast in December 2020.
