THUNDER BAY -- Ashley Nurmela feels dehumanized by racially-motivated social media sites that have been circulating in the city.
“I am a substandard citizen of Thunder Bay by their standards and that doesn’t just include me,” said the first-year native child and family services student at Confederation College.
“That includes my entire class. That includes my children who didn’t ask to be born. That includes our people who are suffering and have always been suffering and simply need help.”
Last month, the Thunder Bay Police Service said they were investigating a pair of Facebook pages that had heavy racist tones to them, particularly towards the Aboriginal community.
Nurmela had received messages from her classmates about the pages expressing their concerns and desire to take action.
“It’s simply not acceptable,” Nurmela said.
In response, the class organized a silent protest for April 15 at the college. They’ve created T-shirts with the words “Stand up” on the front.
On the back it reads “Not only do our actions have consequences but our inactions as well.”
“It’s simply to say we hear what you’re saying on these pages and with the YouTube videos and whatnot and it’s not OK. This is not OK to dehumanize any one set of people. It doesn’t matter what colour you are. It’s not OK,” she said.
The movement has spread beyond the native child and family services class to the entire college community and beyond, which is overwhelming for the small first-year class.
Everyone is welcome to join the silent protest and are encouraged to wear a red shirt.
“The further this can go, the better it will be. The city of Thunder Bay, in my opinion, is not filled 100 per cent with racism. But there is a select group of people out there that feel the need to target certain races, which is their opinion and they’re entitled to that just as I am,” she said.
“However, we don’t agree with that. Instead of going on these pages and saying ‘you’re wrong’ and playing into it and starting a Facebook war, we decided to do something more productive by simply just allowing ourselves to be seen, not heard.”
The protest starts at noon on April 15 in the REACH atrium in the college’s Shuniah building.
T-shirts can be bought at ABC Embroidery for $12, which covers the cost of making the shirt.
