The protest movement against police brutality and anti-black racism sparked by the killing of George Floyd by a Minneapolis police officer who kneeled on his neck for nearly nine minutes arrived in Thompson June 5, when a few hundred people gathered at MacLean Park in front of City Hall for a rally in support of Black Lives Matter.
The crowd, which included representatives of all three levels of government as well as Thompson RCMP detachment members and ordinary citizens of all racial backgrounds, heard from several Thompson residents who shared their experiences of being discriminated against because they are black.
Joseph Onwu, who came to Canada from Nigeria in 2013, said he ended up with a criminal record that was later expunged because he defended himself when attacked by a group of white people in Winnipeg.
“My head was smashed on the wall, my phone broke so I grabbed a weapon to deter them and I went to my neighbour’s place, begged for their phone and called 911,” Onwu related while fighting off tears. “When 911 came, guess who they arrested? I was the one arrested. Up to this day nothing happened to those people and I was scarred for life. What am I supposed to do, allow four people to beat me to death before the justice system will see my face and come to my help? Four people attacked me and I was charged. Nothing happened to the people and I lived my life as a convict for three years.”
Also addressing the crowd was Deon Howard, who said harassment he suffered at work was dismissed by his superiors.
“People in power would say terrible things based on my race or the fact that I’m transgender,” said Howard. “I got to a point where I couldn’t take it any more. When I tried to reach out for help, I was given the runaround. The people in power said terrible things, they gaslighted me and they made me feel small. They made me feel like maybe I’m not worth anything.”
Karen O’Gilvie, who moved to Canada from Jamaica seven years ago, says she and her family have experienced racism in this country and in Thompson, though there have also been many positives that helped them to deal with the negative interactions.
“Whether we live in the United States or not, whether we know the young man that died or not, it should affect us that a life was snuffed out in the manner that it was,” said O’Gilvie, who works as a teacher and is also a church pastor. “I imagine how much he must have thought about his life and the contributions he must have made in this world and in that moment it meant nothing because of the colour of his skin and that is sad.”
Churchill-Keewatinook Aski NDP MP Niki Ashton said that systemic racism in the United States and in Canada is not an accident.
“The system, whether it’s the police system, the justice system, the political system, isn’t broken,” she said. “It was built this way and that is what we are here to fight against today. We stand with everybody who is saying we will not accept this system anymore, that there has to be change, not nice words, not just taking a knee for a photo op. Systemic change is needed for there to be justice.”
Elder Jack Robinson, who delivered a prayer to open the rally, said it was proof that different people can work together peacefully.
“I feel good standing here seeing all you people, seeing all these young people here. I don’t see no buildings burning, I don’t see no cars burning. I don’t see no police with tear gas and that’s the way it’s supposed to be.”
Fred Ntwari, who came to Canada from Burundi as a child, reminded the crowd that it was important to have a broad coalition speak out against racism.
“You are standing up for the underdog, you are standing up for the oppressed, the people whose voices haven’t been heard, and unless that is done, things don’t change,” he said. “Black people have been speaking for years. The issue is that they haven’t been heard. Their voices haven’t been heard. It takes people of different skin tones to stand up and be courageous like you are for things to change.”
