Two political parties in British Columbia have condemned ongoing racism and discrimination towards First Nations peoples due to COVID-19.
B.C. NDP MLA Murray Rankin, who is also the Minister of Indigenous Relations and Reconciliation and Sonia Furstenau, leader of the Greens, along with Rachna Singh, the Parliamentary Secretary for Anti-Racism Initiatives in the province, released a joint statement denouncing racist discrimination against Indigenous peoples under the guise of COVID-19.
“We stand together with Indigenous peoples across the province to denounce and condemn in the strongest possible terms the racist behaviour and discrimination directed at Indigenous peoples,” the statement reads.
It comes following ongoing incidents of racism towards members of the Cowichan Tribes following a recent outbreak of COVID-19 in the community.
Earlier this month, CHEK News featured a piece about a 62-year-old Indigenous woman whose dentist called and cancelled her upcoming appointment due to the rising cases of COVID-19 in Cowichan Tribes.
Other incidents included a Tim Horton’s in Duncan closing its lobby and placing a sign on its door saying the closure was due to the shelter in place order that had been issued by the Cowichan Tribes.
North Cowichan Mayor Al Siebring, said he was disgusted by the comments he read online.
“Really egregious [comments],” said Siebring. “Like why don’t these natives go back to hunting and fishing and isolate from our community. Somebody else said folks that are First Nations that work in retail here they should just be fired until COVID is done.”
“That’s the stuff we’re dealing with,” he added.
RELATED: Cowichan Tribes members subjected to racism as COVID-19 cases climb
“We are deeply concerned about the recent reports coming from members of Cowichan Tribes and the mounting reports regarding anti-Indigenous racism from many other Indigenous communities throughout the province. Racism toward Indigenous peoples has no place in our society and it must stop. We need to stand up to this kind of reprehensible behaviour,” the statement reads.
The ongoing racism prompted a Cowichan Tribes councillor to create an online poster campaign against racism toward his community. On Sunday, more than 50 people, including members of the Resilience B.C. Anti-Racism Network held a car rally denouncing racism towards the Cowichan Tribes.
Their efforts have not gone unnoticed.
“As we all grapple with this pandemic, now is the time to come together, to support one another and to be kind to each other so we can all get through these difficult times safely and soundly,” the statement reads. “We applaud the work the Cowichan Tribes and members of the Resilience B.C. Anti-Racism Network are doing together to galvanize the community.”
Furthermore, Rankin, Furstenau and Singh called on everyone to “do better” and stop being so racist.
“We can, and must, do better. Ending racism is an issue that crosses all political stripes.
We are calling on everyone in B.C. to come together and show that racism and discrimination will not be tolerated,” the statement said.
RELATED: Cowichan Valley convoy rallies against First Nations racism
CHEK News
