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‘I was terrified, I thought I was going to die’: Indigenous women speak out on police abuse, discrimination | CBC News

Byindianadmin

Jun 7, 2020
‘I was terrified, I thought I was going to die’: Indigenous women speak out on police abuse, discrimination | CBC News

Since protests have erupted across North America following the death of George Floyd, Indigenous women in Canada are speaking out about police discrimination and violence against them.

Wendy Nahanee is a member of the Squamish Nation and a program manager with the group called Culture Saves Lives. She says she has experienced discrimination and abuse at the hands of police in both Vancouver and West Vancouver. (Bem Nelms)

As protests erupt across North America following the murder of George Floyd at the hands of a Minneapolis police officer, Indigenous women are speaking out about discrimination and violence they have experienced by police in British Columbia, saying not enough is being done to address racism in the forces. 

“They are very afraid of the police,” says Cree lawyer Amber Prince, who represents a number of Vancouver Indigenous women who say they have been abused and discriminated against by police.

Prince won a B.C. Human Rights Tribunal case for Deborah Campbell, an Indigenous woman who was dragged at least 20 feet by a Vancouver police officer in 2016 when she tried to peacefully witness her son being arrested. He was later released without charges. 

The tribunal ordered the VPD to pay Campbell $20,000 in compensation. It also ruled more training was needed to improve officer interactions with Indigenous people. Prince says that training has yet to be done, which she notes is apparent in recent Vancouver police interactions with Indigenous women. 

“Since the decision, I have heard from women who say they were assaulted by police, that police have used excessive force against them, that they have been given bylaw tickets that appear to be baseless,” Prince said.

Amber Prince is a Cree lawyer who represents a number of Indigenous women who say they have experienced racial profiling and violence at the hands of Vancouver police. (Ben Nelms)

‘None of this should happen’

The Vancouver Police Department declined an interview with the CBC and refused to answer specific questions, but

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