‘False and misleading’: Indigenous group says BC Conservative candidate must be removed

WARNING: The following story contains disturbing language. Discretion is advised.

The Southern Chiefs’ Organization is calling on the BC Conservative Party to remove one of its candidates following remarks she made on election night about Indigenous Peoples.

“I am appalled, shocked, and deeply saddened after reading what this candidate had to say about all our relatives across Turtle Island,” SCO Grand Chief Jerry Daniels said in a statement.

“She should never have been chosen as a candidate for any public office. I call on the leadership of the B.C. Conservative Party to do what’s right and denounce her words and her candidacy.”

Marina Sapozhnikov finished a very close second to the NDP candidate in Juan de Fuca-Malahat, triggering a recount.

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Sapozhnikov was recorded making racist comments about Indigenous Peoples during an election night interview with Vancouver Island University student Alyona Latsinnik, who shared the recording with Global News.

“They didn’t have any sophisticated laws. They were savages. They fought each other all the time,” Sapozhnikov said at one point in the hour-long interview.

“Not 100 per cent savages, maybe 90 per cent savages.”

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At another point in the interview, Sapozhnikov claimed “90 per cent of Indigenous people use drugs.”

“This candidate’s interpretation of First Nations’ history is wrong; it is false and misleading. There is no room at any table for a person who carries these beliefs,” Daniels added. “I am proud to join First Nation leadership in what is now B.C. and appeal to Conservative Party Leader John Rustad to do what is right and take away any public platform for Ms. Sapozhnikov to spew her hateful words and ideas.”

The SCO, which represents 33 First Nations in Manitoba, said it is counter-intuitive for the BC Conservatives to support “a history denier, a racist, and give her a platform to voice her hate.  This is not the path to reconciliation and reveals just how much work still needs to be done.”

BC Conservative Leader John Rustad has condemned the comments.