Editorial

Sexual assault is one of the most terrifying, traumatizing crimes. It is so intensely personal that a victim can be ripped to their very soul, perhaps affected for life.

It is not a crime that can be rationalized by degrees of severity.

With that in mind, it's worth reminding public officials to think before getting involved in sensitive criminal cases, especially when speaking on behalf of the accused.

Recently, Monfwi MLA Jackson Lafferty and Behchoko (Rae-Edzo) Chief Leon Lafferty wrote letters to a territorial court judge urging a convicted sex offender be sentenced to house arrest, rather than being sent to jail. They argued that jailing the convicted man would penalize his wife, children and extended family, all of whom depend upon the man for support. The victim ends up being blamed for the family's plight, rather than the man who broke the law. He's the one who put his family in this position.

Their motives may have been well intentioned, but in the end their words diminish the victim's suffering because the letters seek to minimize punishment. A judge saw the case - a man repeatedly refusing a woman's rejection of his amorous advances - as serious enough to deserve jail time.

To his credit, Jackson Lafferty apologized to the victim. She accepted his apology. NWT News/North has been unable to talk to Leon Lafferty about the case.

The bottom line, however, is that elected officials need to uphold and support the law. If, as in this case, they want to support a family, there are other ways to do it. Arrange a fund-raising campaign, sign up folks to hunt and fish and do odd jobs around their homes.

Not every restaurant in Canada has a replica of itself enshrined at the Canadian Museum of Civilization. Only the Wildcat Cafe can claim that distinction.

There's a reason for that. The museum explains the Cafe's significance as being due to the need of Northern pioneers for "places where they could meet to exchange information and stories."

But the Wildcat looms large in our mythology, if only because it is one of Yellowknife's few surviving remnants of its bush pilot/prospector camp beginnings.

It was nearly demolished in the 1970s. It survived for two reasons: because the volunteers of the Old Stope Association cared enough to save it, and because it found a new life serving up food to a new generation of Northerners.

Chef Pierre LePage of Le Frolic and L'Heritage says he's excited to have the chance to add another season's worth of stories to the Wildcat's lengthy and colourful history.

We're sure it will be another summer of strangers from all over Canada and the world sharing a bench and some good food, telling each other some true stories and a few tall tales.

That's been happening there since 1937.

Learned behaviour

When the federal government dropped $40 million in the NWT's lap for the community capacity building fund, most looked forward to doing good things with all the new cash.

Unfortunately, when it comes to money, nothing is ever easy and now a new hurdle has been thrown in the way of a plan to spend $1.9 million allotted to Hay River. It turns out the person who signed the deal in January wasn't the chief recognized by Indian and Northern Affairs Canada. Karen Felker, the recognized chief, says she won't honour the deal unless it's renegotiated. She wants $500,000 to build a community centre on Vale Island, rather than use $350,000 given to West Point to renovate the band office. Her tactics are unfair and seem eerily similar to the way First Nations were dealt with by federal bureaucrats in years past. One would make a promise, only to have it broken when a new Indian Agent comes to town.

It seems that Felker has learned from the past, but it wasn't fair then and it isn't fair today.

It's not about the money

Eddie Kikoak says it isn't fair that the Canadian government is paying Maher Arar more than $10 million to make up for the torture he suffered while in prison in Syria, while at the same time the government is attempting to buy off residential school survivors with a few thousand each.

Kikoak argues that he was also tortured. He was taken from his home and family, incarcerated with other children in an institution, and was physically and sexually abused. He draws a parallel between aboriginal children in church-run residential schools and prisoners of war.

It's highly unlikely Eddie Kikoak will ever receive 10 million from the federal government as compensation for the abuse he suffered at residential school.

But he's right to characterize the payments of a few thousand dollars apiece to residential school survivors as hush money. With these payouts, the government hopes the problem it created will go away. The fact that the money did not come with an official apology speaks volumes.

No amount of money could ever erase the damage caused by the Canadian government's attempts to assimilate aboriginal youth. No amount of money could ever take away the pain of those who suffered physical and sexual abuse as children from those charged with their care.

However, each residential school survivor needs to decide for themselves whether or not to accept the government payment. The deadline to opt out of the settlement is August.

By opting out, a survivor would retain the right to sue the government independently. But this would be a very long and expensive legal battle that not everyone has the resources, both financial and health-wise, to carry on.

Those who opt for the money should learn as much as they can about what they're agreeing to. People find legal jargon hard to understand. Communities need to do their best to explain the settlement, and family members should make sure their elders have all their questions answered before they make their decision.

And no matter what decision they make, survivors should continue to speak out. We are still living with the aftermath of the government decision to force aboriginal children into church-run residential schools in the loss of identity, breakdown of families, legacies of abuse, and dependence on drugs and alcohol suffered in many communities.

Solutions cannot be found if we don't remember where the root of the problem lies.

Hatred cannot defeat hate

Editorial Comment
Darrell Greer
Kivalliq News
Wednesday, May 23, 2007

I was anything but surprised by the reaction of many people when news of a published article condemning aboriginals in Canada made the rounds earlier this month.

Unfortunately, that also applies to some of the posted responses.

The op-ed piece was penned by former Canadian editor Bob Verdun and published in the Barbados newspaper, the Nation, where he now resides.

For those of you who still haven't read the article, Google its title -- The Human Race: Reparation repercussions -- and you'll be whisked along your way.

First, a little background on the author.

Verdun was, at one time, one of Canada's truly hard-core independent publishers.

He garnered his reputation on writing scathing, if not always totally fair, editorials and his newspaper was a take-no-prisoners publication that put bad news and controversy above all else.

But, the Independent was also a voice for the people of Elmira, Ont., which kept a close eye on politicians and other community leaders.

Verdun wrote with a poison pen most of the time and took most of the credit for his weekly causing the demise of his immediate competition, the 91-year-old Signet.

Verdun is less than flattering to aboriginals in his repercussions article, which comes across as a poor attempt to make himself relevant again.

Sadly, there are more than a few who agree with his comments and those of some who responded.

Those who know me personally realize I'm about as split down the middle on the whole aboriginal-white man issue as a person can get.

I am often captivated while reading or listening to well-prepared, thorough and articulate stances on both sides.

And I abhor racism, no matter whose lips or pen it escapes from.

So, we have an outlandish article that, at its best, is offensive and filled with unsubstantiated claims.

At its worst, especially when read by sympathetic eyes, it can be classed as racist, and a compelling argument could be made as to it being hate mongering at its ugliest.

That being said, two wrongs do not make a right and some of the responses from the aboriginal community have been no less offensive.

One such response included a hateful term I've heard for the second time this year when it stated, "Canada has committed genocide against natives."

As a Canadian of any colour, I am deeply offended by such remarks that do nothing but keep the wheels of racism turning for those who feed off such garbage.

Only a fool would ignore the fact there have been terrible mistakes made concerning aboriginals in Canada, but genocide is not a term to be used lightly.

As unforgivable as it was, would you compare a residential school to Auschwitz? How about Canadian history as compared to Rwanda?

There is nothing gained by using racism against itself, except to keep the fires of hate burning behind the walls of separation.

It is a sad day for us all when a column as demeaning as Verdun's can still be published.

It is a sadder day still when it is met with the same type of remarks, just hurled in the opposite direction by those who hate a different colour.

Will we ever learn?

Clean up your act

Editorial Comment
Dez Loreen
Inuvik Drum
Friday, May 25, 2007

Melted snow in Inuvik means two things: massive puddles and visible garbage.

Both are an inconvenience for the people in town.

Fortunately for the annual rush of tourists, they only see the tail end of both problems.

By the time Arthur and Agnes Southerner make their way up the mighty Dempster in their RV, we've already cleared most of the garbage from our streets, thanks to town council for giving us the prized initiative to pick up after ourselves.

The annual clean-up rewards those brave souls who don the gloves and pick up year-old trash from the sides of the street and our playgrounds.

Here's a crazy suggestion. How about not throwing your garbage outside?

Like, maybe you should just use a trash bin.

Litter bugs have wreaked havoc in this town once again, with potato chip bags and crushed pop cans peppering our streets and culverts.

I don't know who to blame in this situation. I guess I could start with myself.

I caught myself casually dropping a Quickstop cup on the ground a few weeks ago.

I felt bad and regretted it, but I didn't feel bad enough to pick it up. Yes, I'm an awful person.

The worst part of this whole dirty situation is that people litter every day.

It makes the town look really bad and I don't think the all-day sunlight helps the situation.

Maybe you could hide from the problem in mid-February, but not now.

I totally support the idea of a town cleanup, but I wish it didn't have to be so extreme.

I'm sure that every year the town staff collects tons of trash from our streets.

People won't bother to pick up after themselves, but they are sure willing to pick up trash for some cold hard cash.

Isn't littering a fine-able offence? Can someone get charged for dropping garbage on the road?

I think they should be for sure. I know that I would stop littering if it meant paying money.

How about a posted list of people who litter? Can I post photos in the Drum office window of everyone who has the brass to litter?

Instead of just cleaning house before company comes, we should strive to live in a cleaner environment.

Let's stop with the annual last minute rush and start cleaning in the fall season, too.

Maybe some people will stop their dirty habits, but old habits die hard.

Stop smashing bottles everywhere.

Oh those green bottles, how many times do I have to change the pace of my steps just to avoid you on my daily walk to work?

My beef with broken glass is not just because it's inconvenient. Some innocent little kid might get hurt if they trip or fall off their bike.

Hopefully those people so inclined to litter will take this as a wake up call and not just as criticism for their littering life choice.

There is a sobering fact through all this; tourists pay their money to spend time in our town.

That's right. Hard working people pay large amounts of tender to spend a week here under the midnight sun.

Sweep a sidewalk or pick up some trash, so they don't go home and tell all their friends what slobs we are.

Persistence pays off

Editorial Comment
Roxanna Thompson
Deh Cho Drum
Friday, May 25, 2007

Sometimes persistence helps.

Residents in Wrigley have spent years asking for a permanent RCMP presence in their community.

The community is serviced by the Fort Simpson detachment, but a variety of residents pointed out that this is not the same as having their own, permanent RCMP presence. People noted that the RCMP could help deter crimes and make residents feel safer.

Now, after years of requests, the community of Wrigley is about to get what they have been asking for.

The territorial government has approved the funding for two RCMP positions in Wrigley, Gameti and Sachs Harbour, three of the 13 communities in the territory without a permanent RCMP detachment.

Two RCMP officers are expected to be located and living in Wrigley by the fall. This will certainly be a change for a community that has spent so long time with the RCMP being an over three-hour drive or an hour flight away.

Now that the territorial government has taken this step, the next steps cannot happen quickly enough.

Community members will need to continue to push to ensure that the detachment is made permanent. The officers cannot be officially posted to Wrigley until there is permanent housing and a new detachment building available.

Until then two officers will live in Wrigley but they will be stationed there on a rotational basis. While having two officers is an important step, having the same officers posted for continuous periods of time is also essential.

That will allow those RCMP members to become familiar with the community so a positive relationship can be formed.

Now that the residents of Wrigley have seen their request for RCMP come this far they just have to make sure it goes that little extra distance.

The gift of music

There is little that a group of people or even one person with a dream can't accomplish.

The Kole Crook Fiddle Association is a perfect example of this concept. The association started as an idea between two people to make something positive out of a tragic situation. Although it's hard to make something like the death of a promising, young fiddler like Kole Crook seem positive a group of his friends have done just that.

In the five years since the official beginning of the association it has grown from a few students being taught to fiddle in Wrigley to an organization that spans seven communities.The success of the association has shown what a few volunteers with determination and a joint cause can do.

The association has created a whole generation of young fiddlers.

Young people are learning how to play an instrument, a skill that they will be able to keep for the rest of their lives. They will also gain a number of important side benefits including increased self-confidence, pride in their achievement and the knowledge that they can learn a new skill.

The Kole Crook Fiddle Association is a testament to the fact, that in the North, if there is a will, there's a way.

Corrections

A photo caption in the Arts & Leisure section of News/North on May 21 contained incorrect information. The person in the photo is actually Wayne Keefe, one of the artists who participated in the Naaka Arts Festival in Hay River on May 4 & 5. News/North regrets any confusion caused by the error.