BC Conservative staff calls Residential School Survivors’ Flag “a disgrace” the same day her MLAs raise it
As BC Conservative MLAs Scott McInnis, Áʼa꞉líya Warbus and Ward Stamer raised the Survivors’ Flag recognizing the lasting impact of residential schools, their communications staffer Lindsay Shepherd was repeating Dallas Brodie’s attacks on these survivors.
After yesterday’s flag raising, Shepherd wrote: “It is a disgrace that this fake flag flies in front of the provincial parliament buildings, and it is a disgrace to see the shirt of lies framed prominently and permanently beside the coat of arms so that locals and tourists cannot view our insignia without having their eye drawn and redirected to the Orange Shirt.”
Dallas Brodie was fired from the BC Conservative caucus for a similar attack on the survivors of residential schools in March. Several BC Conservatives MLAs called her out at the time:
“Quite frankly, I think it’s quite disgusting that there is even people that would think that these atrocities and these abuses didn’t take place because they did,” said Stamer.
“Inform yourself, get the latest facts, research AND talk to survivors. Questioning the narratives of people who lived and survived these atrocities, is nothing but harmful and taking us backward in reconciliation,” said Warbus.
“I’ve seen what inter-generational trauma has done to indigenous kids. It’s a real thing. They often cannot walk into school. Not because they don’t want to. It’s because their lives have been chaotic as a result of their grandparent’s experience within this institution. That’s the truth,” said McInnis.
“Ms. Brodie’s mocking tone of voice in that video, basically mocking survivors of child sexual abuse, and things of that nature…totally unacceptable… Appropriate steps were taken by John Rustad to remove her,” said Peter Milobar.
Shepherd was the communications contact on a Peter Milobar news release just two weeks ago.
BC NDP MLA Rohini Arora has posted a screenshot and called on those MLAs to denounce Shepherd’s comments here.