Regina man tries to help drowned friend - refused help for 30 minutes
September 13, 2011 - 2:30pm
The story of a man drowned in Wascana Lake hit the news this weekend. THis morning we heard from the woman who made the 911 call. Apparently no one would help the man who was trying to find help because people thought he was trying to steal their phones.
And the woman who made the call said people were even coming up to her asking if she believed him.
And on the noon show here on CBC there are quite a few callers who are saying there is good reason to be wary of people who seem homeless, or are native. and are denying that racism and discrimination had anyting to do with it.
Despicable.
And someone just came on the phone blaming immigrants .
http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/saskatchewan/story/2011/09/13/sk-regina-wa...
Smith, your link doesn't work.
This one does.
What an appalling story.
And don't read the comments. Just don't do it.
What an appalling story.
I know. And I couldn't believe my ears when I heard the host say at the beginning of the program that they would take the story "at face value" for now.
This had everything to do with the fact that the man belonged to the First Nations.
We have serious racial problems here in Saskatchewan
Thanks Maysie.
And one of the callers suggested the government start an information campaign to educate people to let them know how to deal with people coming up to them with emergencies, and as I said already, implying that maybe immigrant values (whatever that means) has something to do with it, or blaming the man for going up to crowds instead of individual people - everything BUT looking at it for what it is - racism and hatred of the homeless.
The woman who called said that someone came up her and challenged her for helping him, asking her if she believed his story.
Star Phoenix editorial:
Saskatchewan needs to face racism.
http://www.thestarphoenix.com/life/Sask+needs+face+racism/5422962/story....
That's a pretty good article, Smith, thanks for posting it.
It's a start.
Wow, that editorial is rare indeed. Adding my thanks, Smith.
For the editorial board of a daily, yup. It's not bad.
Certainly better than the noon show host on CBC yesterday, who in a fit of devil's advocacy actually asked "What about people who thought that residential school was a good experience?"
(though really, I think the first mistake is the habit of calling it a "school" at all).
One step forward, one step back. I guess it's an ongoing process.
The CBC frames its questions to illicit "controversial" responses. I have heard CBC radio in BC ask questions and thought they were actively inviting racist commentary.
That was a good editorial. Saskatchewan cities are in many ways the most ghettoized in Canada. FN's people are the largest visible minority in a very white population and arguably they are more discriminated against than any other group in our society. Even in Vancouver's Downtown Eastside the percentage of FN's residents is far less than in large parts of Saskatoon's poorest neighbourhoods.
There is also the fact that Vancouver does not have nearly the same Native population as Regina, Saskatoon or PA. I remember being surprised at how hidden the culture was - at least in the city - when I lived there.
But yes, this is an extremely racist and divided place. And that was a good editorial, but it is unfortunate that someone had to die in order to get it written.
Thanks for that editorial, Winston.
Even in the face of CBCs usual brand of casual racism, I cannot believe that quote. I want to write the ombudsperson. Do you know what show or even have a link?
Edited to correct who I was addressing
The CBC piece?
It was Blue Sky, CBC's noon show here in Saskatchewan, and they were discussing the deadline for registering for compensation which passed yesterday.
Don't know if there's a podcast. I have been meaning to dig it up, but I have been a bit swamped with work this morning.
It's hard, because I have heard cases in which an interviewer asks a deliberately obtuse question in order to set the stage for a response.
I don't think that was the case here - I think it was just callous ignorance.
I think the problem here is that so many people in the dominant culture still have no idea what that system was - that it was effectively jail for entire generations, and that during part of its history 30 to 60 percent of children who were forced into it came out dead.
That is a higher death rate than in some WWII prison camps.
Again - it was not a school, and to call it that is entirely misleading.
Speaking of which, did anyone hear the interview with former PM Paul Martin on The Sunday Edition last weekend? If not, it is worth listening to.
Don't know if there's a podcast. I have been meaning to dig it up, but I have been a bit swamped with work this morning.
It's here, at 15:38 of the audio clip.
Given the full context, I don't really think it's ombudsman material, but I could be wrong.
Anyway, listen to the whole thing if you have time. It's infuriating and heartbreaking.
Thanks Unionist.
Funny - the last time I called CBC audience relations the front end person I spoke with actually started arguing with me.
It was about the two men in England who were convicted of "playing a major role" in the riots because of their online postings, even though that was completely inaccurate - not even the judge said that.
The person I called started rebutting me with some shit about how serious riots were, and I finally had to shut her down and just tell her to please register my complaint, because their report did not jive with any of the facts.
That happened to me the one time I bothered to try and complain. The procedure obviously works as designed since I haven't phoned a second time.
I'm afraid they will have to try harder than that to shut me up. After all, I am a shareholder, and they have a mandate to comply with.
But on the issue, what has anyone learned here that they should not have learned years ago when Neil Stonechild was murdered?
And the Torys say that anti-semitism is the problem....sheesh! I wonder if it would have been a Jew in the lake how long it would have taken to get help.
Okay seriously?? This is what passes for left now? ^
What? Ididn't mean anything racist by it. Sorry. I clearly do not understand
Your comment was racist as hell.
I feel like I can't even discuss a race without being racist
Sorry
Thanks for the apology, knownothing. Because power dynamics are tied up so much in the way we talk about race, we need to be extra thoughtful when we do talk about it. First of all, your statement is what anti-racist educators call "othering." Which means it picks an ethnicity and highlights its marginality. Second, anti-Semitism is a documented problem in Canada--quite distinct from the state of Israel's role in global imperialist hegemony. Third, the last part of the post reads to me as contemptuous--as if "a Jew" either didn't deserve to be saved (or at least less than the victim). This probably has to do in part with the inherent suggestion that Jewish people enjoy a privileged position in Canada, even more privileged than your regular market white dude--which is, of course, patently false.
I still don't fully understand what you mean but I will avoid race based conversations until I do