There have been some heavy discussions in the halls of the Advocate over the past week.
Like millions of others, some of our staff were gripped by the shootings of two black Americans by police officers; then again, when a shooter opened fire in Dallas, Texas, at a peaceful Black Lives Matter protest, killing five officers and injuring more police and civilians.
All this just days after the Toronto #BLM group made waves around the country, commandeering Canada’s largest pride parade to force the focus on issues specifically impacting people of colour.
After these events came an onslaught of opinion pieces by pundits and everyday social media users alike. Race was at the heart of each. Over and over again, Canucks from sea to sea shared their nationalistic pride as they typed, “I’m glad I live in Canada, where we don’t have these problems.”
Sorry to burst your bubble – but yes, racism exists in Canada, and yes, it can be violent.
We only have to look at Saskatoon’s “starlight tours,” the non-sanctioned practice of police officers hauling indigenous peoples out to city’s limits, sometimes in the dead of winter. People froze to death, allegedly related to these “tours.” This was not something that happened long ago; reports started coming to light in the early 2000s.
“But that isn’t Athabasca,” some might say.
As Athabascans, we have a regional history rooted in the acknowledgement and confrontation of racism. Amber Valley was largely built by an exodus of African Americans, looking to homestead in places safer for their families than late 19th and early 20th century Oklahoma. Not everyone in this new home was welcoming.
How about a modern example? Earlier this summer, a grandmother from Calling Lake shared a story about her young grandson being confronted with racist rhetoric for the first time. While she did not want to draw attention to that incident out of concern for the child, she encouraged us as a news organization to report on other instances of racism in the region.
The first step to fixing a problem is recognizing it exists. Racism is a negative force that impacts Canadians, but by speaking out when we are confronted with it, bit by bit we will find the path to a more equitable, more inclusive society.
