Dying woman’s videos spark outrage

JOLIETTE: The Canadian province of Quebec said it had launched two investigations as outrage spread yesterday over a livestream made by a sick indigenous woman before her death that showed hospital staff verbally abusing her.

Joyce Echaquan (37), a mother of seven, checked into a hospital in Joliette, Quebec, on Sunday to get treatment for stomach pains. She died the next day.

She captured disparaging remarks made by hospital staff on her phone and posted them on Facebook Live. The videos sparked a wave of criticism and protest in a country with a long history of abuse against its indigenous people.

Quebec Premier Francois Legault said a provincial task force on racism would issue recommendations in coming weeks, and a nurse had been fired over the incident.

In the video, nurses can be heard in French calling Echaquan ‘‘stupid as hell,’’ and suggesting she was only good for sex. — Reuters