THUNDER BAY – The City of Thunder Bay’s top staffer has issued an apology after a planned rodeo-themed event was criticized as insensitive to the city’s Indigenous community.
The city briefly promoted a planned “Roundabout Rodeo” on social media Friday before removing the materials in the face of public criticism. The event will still go ahead with a different theme.
City manager Norm Gale said the framing was a mistake in a statement issued Monday evening.
“On behalf of the Corporation, I apologize to the community, and anyone who was negatively impacted, by our use of the term ‘rodeo’ and accompanying graphics in recent advertising for a roundabout educational event,” the statement read. “We understand that it was insensitive and in poor judgement.”
“The City of Thunder Bay is committed to reconciliation with Indigenous Peoples, and commits to continually work on our relationship with the Indigenous community and move forward in a positive and inclusive way.”
The city said it would not comment further on the matter, in response to questions from TBNewswatch about how the event was approved and any planned changes to prevent similar occurences.
The chair of the city’s anti-racism committee, Jason Veltri, had criticized the Roundabout Rodeo concept in an email shared with media outlets.
“This roundabout is being created as a Medicine Wheel, it is very important to our community, the visibility of Indigenous people in our city, and the stolen lands which our city resides on,” he wrote. “To make this into a ‘rodeo’ isn't paying respect to the first people of the land, nor the intent of the design.”
The roundabout’s medicine wheel design had been approved by the city as an effort to recognize Indigenous culture.
The event was meant to teach residents about the rules of roundabouts, as the first one on a Thunder Bay city street at Edward Street and Redwood Avenue prepares to open in a matter of weeks.
The event will still go forward on Aug. 21 with a different theme, the city said Monday, with new materials to be released later this week.
