Race relations deteriorate in wake of Stanley verdict
Gerald Stanley has been found not guilty in the killing of Colten Boushie but there are no heroes or a no white knight — only people caught up in a tragic series of events.
Someone called it the trial of the century, but it’s hardly that, although it defines what have been settler-First Nations relations in Saskatchewan and this decision will only perpetuate that sorry state of affairs.
Back on Aug. 9, 2016, a group of five young people entered the rural property of Stanley and his family. What followed was a series of mistakes and senseless violence. It ended with the death of Boushie, a young man who had recently moved from Montana to be with his mother’s side of the family, the Baptistes, on the Red Pheasant reserve south of the Battlefords.
The subsequent events and trial have only highlighted the divide between the settler community and the First Nations.
When court adjourns, the two groups walk out and go their separate ways. There is no interaction or even acknowledgment between the two groups.
The Stanleys are not alone — they come from a settler society that thinks it holds dominion over the land, the resources and the people on it. They have enjoyed a life of white privilege and dominance.
That narrative is changing. The settler population of rural Saskatchewan is aging and as farms grow in size and the next generation moves away, the rural population is dropping. Meanwhile the Indigenous population is young and growing; our people are getting educated and moving into the professions and positions of power.
The century-old position of white privilege enjoyed by the settler community is quickly becoming a thing of the past. The idyllic rural lifestyle has now reached a fortress mentality and the Stanley trial is a microcosm of that.
On the other hand, for the past year and a half there has been a growing movement in support of the Baptiste family calling for justice for Boushie. People attending court were met with people carrying signs calling for justice, but this was only the tip of the iceberg. There is strong support from the elders, leaders and Indigenous people across the province and Canada. This trial holds tremendous symbolic importance.
All across Indian Country, people have been saying prayers and conducting ceremonies in support of the Baptiste family and the call for justice.
The prayers don’t call for revenge or harm for the Stanley family. Our people believe that it is not our place to ask the Creator to bring harm to others. Our prayers must be positive and so they call for justice and fairness as well as strength for the relatives of the deceased.
We First Nations people believe in natural justice. It’s called karma in India. Our elders tell us to be patient because what goes around comes around. Hatred and racism cannot correct what has happened.
In my line of work, I have met many people in both high and low places. One time I was talking to a man who was a drug addict and had spent large amounts of his life behind bars. He told me of a man in prison who had terrible nightmares and would call out in his sleep. One day he was asked what the matter was and why he had nightmares. He said he was in jail for killing someone and when he went to sleep he had dreams about the man he killed. He felt genuine remorse but there was nothing he could do.
Stanley must have his moments when he wishes he could turn back the clock, and the events of Aug. 9, 2016 will likely haunt him for the rest of his life.
Our elders counsel the youth about our philosophy, but the pain is also real and after the trial healing must begin. The deceased must be allowed to continue his journey to the next life and the family must place his memory in that special place in the heart and continue their life’s journey.
Now Boushie’s spirit can rest and make the journey to the next world. But we who remain continue to live in a deeply flawed society where race relations continue to deteriorate. Douglas Cuthand is an Indigenous writer for the Saskatoon StarPhoenix.