Leaders call for action after ‘white lives matter too’ sign hung from bridge near First Nation in Sask.

Warning: this story accommodates particulars some could discover distressing.

By Edward Era Barbacena

First Nations organizations are talking out after a sign displaying a racist message was hung from a bridge near the Muskoday First Nation, 21 kilometres southeast of Prince Albert, Sask., earlier this week.

The cardboard sign stated “white lives matter too,” in bigger lettering. Below, in smaller lettering, it stated “who else is going to pay taxes so you can sit on your a–?”

Muskoday Chief Ava Bear stated a number of neighborhood members reported seeing a person dangle the “disturbing” sign on the bridge over the South Saskatchewan River near Muskoday on Wednesday morning. 

She stated it was a blatantly racist action.

“It’s totally uncalled for. It’s totally unacceptable. I’m just appalled,” she stated.

A pair of sneakers had been hung with the sign, a gesture Bear described as a mockery of symbolism used to symbolize the lives misplaced in Canada’s residential college system.

“It’s really evident that ignorance plays a key role in the situation that happened here today,” Bear stated. 

“To me, it’s disgusting that this individual, this male, would hang these shoes.” 

Bear disputed misconceptions the sign portrayed. She stated the “white lives matter” message probably stemmed from the current consideration on discoveries of unmarked or undocumented gravesites at residential college grounds.

She stated the invention of these our bodies does not modified the truth that all lives are vital.

Hundreds of sneakers and stuffed animals had been left on the steps of the Saskatchewan legislature in Regina on the finish of May in honour of 215 youngsters whose our bodies had been discovered in unmarked graves in Kamploops, B.C., earlier that week. 

Bear stated the second false impression the sign portrayed was that First Nations individuals do not pay taxes. 

She stated individuals with that form of pondering are “living in the dark ages” and fail to acknowledge the First Nations taxpayers who contribute to the province and to the nation. 

Bear stated there have been an array of feelings in the neighborhood because of the sign, from emotions of damage and disappointment, to her personal preliminary anger.

The Saskatoon Tribal Council, of which Muskoday First Nation is a member, additionally commented on the sign Wednesday afternoon. 

Tribal Chief Mark Arcand reiterated Bear’s feedback and stated the incident was unacceptable. 

Arcand stated the hanging of the sign and sneakers must be addressed, calling it a sign of racism and hatred towards First Nations individuals. 

“Today is July 14, 2021, and this is still happening to our First Nations,” Arcand stated. 

“People are driving through our communities and leaving these kinds of signs to trigger people, to add more trauma. It’s unacceptable. The general public has to be aware of this.” 

Arcand stated the general public could be trying to the Saskatoon Tribal Council to help the Muskoday First Nation’s efforts in educating the person who hung the sign.

The Federation of Sovereign Indigenous Nations, which represents Saskatchewan’s First Nations, additionally issued a press release in regards to the incident Wednesday. 

In it, Chief Bobby Cameron stated the actions amounted to a hate crime and referred to as on the RCMP to research and lay costs.

“These children [found on residential school grounds] did not have a voice and now that they’re being found, they’re being made fun of by ignorant racists and we must all stand up against hate crimes in Saskatchewan,” Cameron stated. 

“We have filed an official complaint with the RCMP and will not rest until these acts end in this province.”

A press release from Saskatchewan RCMP stated the Prince Albert detachment obtained a criticism in regards to the sign simply after midday CST on Wednesday. 

The assertion stated the investigation was nonetheless in its early levels and requested anybody with details about who hung the sign to contact the Prince Albert RCMP detachment.

Source: CBC