The abhorrent and racist ad, equating native kids with vermin, titled Native Extraction Service, was posted on the website , but was taken down by 1:38 p.m. CT on Thursday.
It was headlined by a picture of three young aboriginals and the text went like this:
"Have you ever had the experience of getting home to find those pesky little buggers hanging outside your home, in the back alley or on the corner???
Well fear no more, with my service I will simply do a harmless relocation. With one phone call I will arrive and net the pest, load them in the containment unit (pickup truck) and then relocate them to their habitat.
It doesn't matter if they need to be dropped off on Salter (Street, in Winnipeg's North End) or the rez, I will go that extra mile. The North End of Winnipeg is where many city dwellers of First Nations descent live.
My service is free because I want to live in the same city you do, a clean one,"
Naturally leaders of the community are vexed about this and rightfully so. An investigation will follow.
WFDS
Longhouse Media is appalled by the use of our image for such hateful and demeaning purposes. The photo of the three adolescent boys pictured in the "Native Extraction Service" advertisement placed in the UsedWinnipeg.com website, was taken from promotional material for our film MARCH POINT, an award-winning documentary. This film was made with these three young filmmakers and tells the story of their struggles of coming of age in a Native community in the United States. That this image would be used for such deviant ends is deeply hurtful to these young men and their families, and to the Native community as a whole.
ReplyDeleteEven though this advertisement was taken down before any violent crimes occurred, there has still been damage inflicted towards indigenous youth in the form of threat and intimidation. The Criminal Code of Canada says, "a hate crime is committed to intimidate, harm or terrify not only a person, but an entire group of people to which the victim belongs. The victims are targeted for who they are, not because of anything they have done. Hate crimes involve intimidation, harassment, physical force or threat of physical force against a person, a family or a property." -- Section 319(1): Public Incitement of Hatred, Criminal Code of Canada
We condemn this as a hate crime, and will join with others to see the perpetrators are brought to justice.
You think that the ad is bad. Your should read the comments on the CBC site that applaud the sentiment. totally nauseating.
ReplyDeleteS