BC Conservative MLA Anna Kindy deletes letter defending residential school denialist comments, now she must apologize
North Island MLA Anna Kindy has deleted her April 5 letter defending residential school denialist comments. Now she must apologize and acknowledge the reality of residential schools in Canada.
Kindy has already apologized for inappropriately using Legislative letterhead for her defence of Aaron Gunn, a right wing commentator running in the federal election who has denied Canada’s treatment of Indigenous people constitutes genocide.
Kindy’s letter defended denialist comments from Gunn. In her letter, Kindy argues residential schools “did not meet the threshold of ‘genocide’” and defended Gunn’s position as “hardly unreasonably” and “certainly not disqualifying.”
The Truth and Reconciliation Commission as well as Supreme Court Justice Beverley McLachlin found a “cultural genocide” occurred in Canada.
Gunn has said they’re lying: “There was no genocide. Stop lying to people and read a book,” and “‘genocide’ doesn’t remotely reflect the reality of what happened.”
Conservative MLA Brennan Day, whose name was attached to the letter, has privately told multiple constituents he “did not consent” to his name being included.
Community members are calling for Day to clarify publicly whether he consented to being included on the now deleted letter.
Dozens of local leaders, including many Indigenous chiefs have written a letter condemning Gunn’s comments in response to Kindy’s harmful letter.
BC NDP MLA Ravi Parmar: “It’s one thing to take the letter down – it’s another to apologize for what it says. Anna Kindy’s letter contained views that are harmful, wrong and hurt people. She must do the right thing and apologize. Brennan Day has the opportunity to clarify his position as well. He says one thing privately and something else publicly. His constituents deserve clarity on what their representative stands for.”