the town\u2019s official YouTube channel.<\/a><\/p>\nDuring a discussion about funding to improve water infrastructure, a town councillor is heard asking how often funding opportunities for this work come up.<\/p>\n
Rick Dumas, mayor of Marathon and president of the Northern Ontario Municipal Association, responds by saying \u201cthey come up all the time.\u201d<\/p>\n
We recognize that the wording could be misunderstood and we sincerely apologize.- Rick Dumas, mayor of Marathon<\/p>\n
A senior staff member is then heard off-camera, saying \u201cyeah, we\u2019re just the wrong colour.\u201d<\/p>\n
Members of nearby First Nation Biigtigong Nishnaabeg (also known as Ojibways of the Pic River First Nation) interpreted the remark as referring to skin colour.<\/p>\n
\u201c[Biigtigong Nishnaabeg] staff and people of Biigtigong believe that the rude, bigoted remark was made because Biigtigong had been successful in obtaining funding for the complete replacement of our water system, which was outdated and inadequate and beyond capacity,\u201d says a statement from Chief Duncan Michano.<\/p>\n
\u201cBiigtigong Nishnaabeg did not receive that funding based on skin colour. It was awarded because of a concerted and skilled campaign and application process by both Biigtigong political leaders and administrative staff working together for the betterment of the community.\u201d<\/p>\n
A video clip of the comment was widely circulated on social media. Dumas issued a statement Jan. 30 in response.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe remark was intended to refer to the political challenge municipalities can face when seeking external funding, specifically in relation to political \u2018colours\u2019 and was not meant to reference Indigenous identity or any cultural group,\u201d Dumas said.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe recognize that the wording could be misunderstood and we sincerely apologize.\u201d<\/p>\n
A follow-up statement was issued the same day on behalf of the town\u2019s senior administration, which says the video clip circulating on social media \u201cdoes not reflect the full context of the discussion taking place at the time.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe remark was made amid frustration over the ongoing challenges municipalities face in securing adequate funding and support from other levels of government,\u201d it says.<\/p>\n
However, in Michano\u2019s view, the town\u2019s statements fail to acknowledge the pain the comment caused.<\/p>\n
\u201cInstead of holding the person(s) accountable for their actions\/comments, there appears to be an attempt to support the individual(s) by providing an escape route,\u201d Michano said.<\/p>\n
\u201cBiigtigong has no choice but to suspend any support or funding for projects that were proposed until such a time that there is a reset in the relationship.\u201d<\/p>\n
In its statement, Biigtigong Nishnaabeg suggests Marathon create an additional councillor position filled by a person from the First Nation who lives in town. It also demands the municipality \u201chold the person who made those remarks, as well as their supervisor, accountable for their actions and words.\u201d<\/p>\n
Biigtigong Nishnaabeg also references national calls to action aimed at advancing truth and reconciliation \u201cthat [the mayor and council] can fall back on and implement:<\/p>\n
‘Trust must be earned through action’<\/p>\n
About 3,100 people live in Marathon, a northern Ontario community about 300 kilometres northeast of Thunder Bay. The population of Biigtigong Nishnaabeg is around 530 people.<\/p>\n
Provincially, Marathon is represented by Thunder Bay\u2014Superior North NDP MPP Lise Vaugeois. Dumas ran for the Progressive Conservatives in last year’s provincial election in that riding.<\/p>\n
On Tuesday, neighbouring First Nation Netmizaaggamig Nishnaabeg (formerly known as Pic Mobert First Nation) issued a statement in solidarity with Biigtigong Nishnaabeg.<\/p>\n
\u201cNetmizaaggamig Nishnaabeg will follow Biigtigong Nishnaabeg’s lead and will suspend any support, funding, or partnership involvement in proposed projects with the Township of Marathon until such time that the Township demonstrates that the situation has been remediated effectively and that trust can be rebuilt,\u201d says the statement from Chief Clyde Jacobs.<\/p>\n
With a population of fewer than 350 people on reserve, Jacobs said many people from Netmizaaggamig Nishnaabeg live and work in Marathon and access essential services there.<\/p>\n
\u201cAs neighbouring First Nations and regional partners, Netmizaaggamig Nishnaabeg recognizes that comments of this nature are not isolated. They reflect deeper issues that continue to exist in institutions and workplaces across Canada, including within municipal governance and administration,\u201d his statement says.<\/p>\n
\u201cAttempts to minimize or explain away this remark do not address the harm it has caused, nor do they rebuild trust. Regardless of intent, the comment was inappropriate in the context and was received negatively by members of our community and should be addressed accordingly.\u201d<\/p>\n
Ultimately, Jacobs said his community \u201cremains committed to respectful regional partnership, but meaningful partnership cannot exist without trust. Trust must be earned through action.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Listen to this article Estimated 5 minutes The audio version of this article is generated by AI-based technology.…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":468733,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[43,44,41,39,42,40],"class_list":["post-468732","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-headlines","tag-headlines","tag-news","tag-top-news","tag-top-stories","tag-topnews","tag-topstories"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/468732","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=468732"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/468732\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/468733"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=468732"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=468732"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=468732"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
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