Justice for Colten Fredericton

About 150 people defied cold winds as they came to a vigil in the name of Colten Boushie. The indigenous 22 year old who was shot in the head and killed in 2016.

The shooter, Gerald Stanley was cleared from his second-degree murder trial which has upset indigenous communities all over the country. Rallies by the name “Justice for Colten” have been held to raise awareness of problems within the Canadian court system and to support Boushie’s family.

The vigil in Fredericton allowed speakers to ask for reforms in the justice system for indigenous people. Wolastoq Traditional Grand Chief Ron Trembley wasn’t surprised with the results, “We’re so used to getting the injustices that my response should have been frustration and anger and so on, but truly I wasn’t surprised.”

One of the problems is that the jury selected for gunman Stanley’s trial was all white with no indigenous representation. Critics argue that not having any indigenous representation in the court can in the long run lead to bias and misunderstanding of indigenous cultural and social customs. Trembley thinks that Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has not lived up to his election promises about justice reforms, “One of his election promises was justice reform, here it is a year and a half, they’re still at the table.”

After Boushie’s death and the court verdict, the Liberal government has been prompted to promise reforms including more indigenous people in juries.

The vigil was organized by No One Is Illegal, a migrant justice group that works in solidarity with indigenous and black people on Turtle Island. No One Is Illegal representative Erin Morton felt that the vigil went well and that it was important to do it. “Demonstrations like this are important because in times if grief, I think the community needs to come together and it’s also an opportunity for settlers like me to step up with our indigenous community members.”