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Families of 2 Indigenous people killed by N.B. police to gather for ceremony

Click to play video: 'Outrage grows over RCMP killing of Indigenous man in N.B.'
Outrage grows over RCMP killing of Indigenous man in N.B.
WATCH: Outrage grows over RCMP killing of Indigenous man in N.B – Jun 15, 2020

The families of two Indigenous people recently shot to death by New Brunswick police were expected to meet Monday at a First Nation near Miramichi, N.B.

A message posted late Sunday on the Facebook page of the chief of the Metepenagiag First Nation says the two families were to gather at the home of the mother of Rodney Levi, the 48-year-old local man who was shot by an RCMP officer on Friday night.

Rodney Levi in an undated photo. Submitted

READ MORE: Indigenous man fatally shot by RCMP was ‘welcomed guest,’ says N.B. pastor

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The message includes an invitation to all drummers from the local First Nation communities to gather at the home, where the Levi family will meet with relatives of Chantel Moore, the 26-year-old woman who on June 4 was shot by an officer with the Edmundston Police Department.

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Click to play video: 'Chief asks community not to speak to media about shooting'
Chief asks community not to speak to media about shooting

The shootings have prompted calls for an independent inquiry and an overhaul of policing in the province, where the minister of Aboriginal affairs has already said there is a problem with systemic racism.

Click to play video: 'Que. watchdog to probe fatal shooting of N.B. Indigenous man'
Que. watchdog to probe fatal shooting of N.B. Indigenous man

As well, the shootings have become part of a broader international discussion about police brutality and racism, which has gained prominence since police in Minnesota were implicated in the death of a Black man during a violent arrest on May 25.

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Quebec’s independent police watchdog agency has been called in to investigate both New Brunswick shootings because the province does not have its own such unit.

READ MORE: Former N.B. ombudsman says police not equipped to deal with mental health issues

This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 15, 2020.

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