Credit: The Canadian Press

By Doug Collins

Walking Together

ROTHENBURGER: Statues and burning churches – ‘we must walk together’

Jul 12, 2021 | 4:13 AM

KAMLOOPS — INDIGENOUS LEADERS on southern Vancouver Island are calling for unity and an end to violence and vandalism committed in the name of cultural justice.

They’re concerned about mistreatment of indigenous people but also about attacks on statues and the burning of churches.

Their signed declaration follows the destruction of a statue of Capt. James Cook in Victoria and the burning of a totem pole in suspected retaliation, and is a wonderfully articulate rejection of the eye-for-an-eye response to racism.

Contrast their plea for peace with a tweet from B.C. Civil Liberties executive director Harsha Walia in reaction to the arsons of several Catholic churches. “Burn it all down,” she said.

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Attacks on churches across the country (some torched, others vandalized) have come after the tragic discovery of the remains of hundreds of children who attended residential schools, many of which were run by the Catholic Church.

The motives behind the attacks remain unproven but if they were done as some sort of revenge it’s not only criminal, but incredibly misguided — while the residential schools were an abomination, the historic little churches were integral to the indigenous communities they served.

It’s notable that so many indigenous leaders have condemned the vandalism and arsons, yet the Civil Liberties executive director seemingly chose to validate them.

The tweet may have intended to metaphorically refer to the system in general but, at the least, was wildly inappropriate and certainly not conciliatory. Just as disturbing is the number of — no doubt, well-intentioned — comments on social media attempting to justify the attacks on the churches.

But, thankfully, we then have the Vancouver Island declaration with the message that not only must hate and racism be rebuked but that violence and vandalism, no matter who is responsible, and no matter under what name they are committed, must be deplored.

As the chiefs say, the answer is not hatred and retribution, but to “walk together, support each other and demonstrate humanity.”

I’m Mel Rothenburger, the Armchair Mayor.

Mel Rothenburger is a former mayor of Kamloops and a retired newspaper editor. He is a regular contributor to CFJC Today, publishes the ArmchairMayor.ca opinion website, and is a director on the Thompson-Nicola Regional District board. He can be reached at mrothenburger@armchairmayor.ca.

Editor’s Note: This opinion piece reflects the views of its author, and does not necessarily represent the views of CFJC Today or the Jim Pattison Broadcast Group.