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(rdnewsNOW/Josh Hall)
"silent no more"

Biggest crowd yet comes out for third anti-racism protest in Red Deer

Jun 6, 2020 | 4:09 PM

“It’s 2020 and we will be silent no more.”

Those were the words of Dieulita Datus, a central Alberta woman born in Haiti, who passionately addressed a crowd of approximately 1,000 on Saturday at a third anti-racism protest in Red Deer this week.

They come on the heels of George Floyd’s death in Minneapolis. Floyd’s neck was knelt on for nearly nine minutes before he died. The four officers involved have all been fired and face criminal charges.

Addressing everyone as brother and sisters, Datus spoke directly to Black people, saying, “We are here together because when we heard the voice of George Floyd in that video, every single Black woman was summoned, every single Black mother was summoned, every girlfriend, every fiancée, every brother, every single one of us was summoned to come together because this is the last time that this happens.

“If we have to show up every day, every hour, every second and say it, we will do that because we are here for change.”

And to white people, she said that while those in attendance may not be the face of the system, it is still their responsibility to take action.

“We are here to ask for change. We’re not here for revenge, but we are simply here to make demands,” she said. “Teach your children, teach your husbands, teach your wives, teach your partners, teach your teachers, ask your politicians … use your white privilege for good.”

Datus also singled out LGBTQ2S+ people, Muslims and brown people, saying that those at the protest and who are against racism stand with them because they are part of the oppressed also.

“To the politicians, to the police officers, we see you,” she continued. “But guess what, we have our votes and we will start using our votes to demand change. So listen up because we’re here and we’re not going anywhere.”

Saturday’s crowd did not march through the downtown like the 150 on Monday and roughly 500 did on Friday. Attentiveness was the theme as all who came listened to the stories of speakers like Datus, who concluded by telling churches that it’s time for more than just thoughts and prayers.

Cheryl-Jaime Baptiste, who co-organized Saturday’s protest and last Monday’s, was emotional at the end of the event.

“Not only because of the speakers, but the messages they had were absolutely — some of them were heart-wrenching to listen to,” she said. “The amount of discrimination that these people have faced — just as much as I have — there’s no place for that. To see everyone come together and see how positive every one is, it’s absolutely amazing. I did not ever think this was possible.”

Baptiste, who has Cree and Blackfoot heritage, told rdnewsNOW last weekend of a recent encounter at a fast food location where someone was speaking negatively of the George Floyd case. She stepped in and was subsequently told that she’d “struggle for the rest of her life” simply because of her background.

Other speakers on Saturday addressed the UCP’s Bill 1, and Chantel Moore, the young First Nations woman killed by police in New Brunswick this week.

“All lives won’t matter until all of our lives matter,” one said. “To watch the George Floyd video, we are outraged. All of you need to take a stand and educate yourselves.”

Kelly Carius, who runs The Moment of Kindness Foundation, and NoSuchThingAsABully.com, works with elders in Maskwacis to address bullying and discrimination.

“Kindness is the opposite of bullying, you get more of what you focus on. I started the kindness car as a visual way for people to make a pledge to be kind,” she says. “I believe in the school of thought that you can only ignore things for so long before people get loud about it, and that’s what we’re seeing here.”

Kelly Carius (right) and her ‘kindness car’ at Saturday’s protest. (rdnewsNOW/Josh Hall)

One Eleven Grill was also on hand Saturday hosting a charity BBQ with proceeds going to the Red Deer Native Friendship Society.

(rdnewsNOW/Josh Hall)
(rdnewsNOW/Josh Hall)