Beyak controversy offers a good chance to talk about racism
KAMLOOPS — I wonder if we’ll ever be able to have a respectful debate about racism in this country.
It’s such a deeply sensitive subject that we just don’t seem able to even mention the word unless it’s in anger. Racism. And yet, the word is so commonly used it’s starting to lose effectiveness.
Senator Lynn Beyak has been kicked out of the federal Conservative caucus. The move is justified in view of her refusal to remove letters — or rebut them at least — from her Parliamentary website that refer to Indigenous people as “lazy” and that say they should be grateful for residential schools.
Still, there are subtleties worth talking about. For example, Beyak has stated that some residential school teachers were “well-intentioned” and that their “good deeds” should be acknowledged.