THUNDER BAY -- Senior elementary school students in Muskrat Dam First Nation have collectively decided to stay away from next month's Canadian Lakehead Exhibition.
Muskrat Dam Chief Stan Beardy says it's out of concern for their safety.
"They don't feel safe in Thunder Bay with what's been happening lately with the loss of young people from the north," he said in an interview on Tuesday.
Beardy said the group of 15 to 29 students in Grades 7 and 8 are "very concerned about their well-being, about whether they'll come back alive or in a wooden box."
He noted that the decision the students made to boycott the exhibition reflects worries about the risks for First Nations young people in Thunder Bay in general.
"I don't think it's so much whether they've had an issue at the CLE itself. I think they're talking about the safety of being in Thunder Bay."
Beardy said he believes Muskrat Dam students want to send a message to other students, to the City of Thunder Bay, to the CLE and "maybe the Chamber of Commerce," that 13 or 14-year-olds potentially going to school in the city are very troubled by what has happened to other youth.
He said the Muskrat Dam band council fully supports the decision the students made, and he expects there may be similar discussions happening in other First Nations communities.
"When students start taking a message about their well-being, I think it's time perhaps for people to see what can be done to assure those young people if they want to get an education in Thunder Bay or some other urban centres, there have to be some safety measures to make sure that they stay alive."
CLE President Al Law has not yet responded to a request from Dougall Media for an interview.
