The six chiefs of the Wolastoqey Nation in New Brunswick say this week’s coroner’s inquest into the police killing of Chantel Moore demonstrates the urgent need for an Indigenous-led inquiry into systemic racism.
They say the findings and recommendations of the coroner’s jury don’t address the serious nature of the tragedy or the systemic issues embedded in the justice system.
Moore, a 26-year-old Indigenous woman, was fatally shot by police in Edmundston, N.B., in June 2020 during a wellness check after she advanced toward an officer with a knife.
She is member of the Tla-o-qui-aht First Nation, and had moved from Port Alberni, B.C., to Edmunston to be closer to her daughter.
In a statement, Chief Ross Perley of the Tobique First Nation says the inquest has not lessened the need for an inquiry into systemic racism.
Chief Allan Polchies of the St. Mary’s First Nation says an inquiry would provide more accountability for Moore’s death.
New Brunswick’s systemic racism commissioner, Manju Varma, is currently conducting a review into institutional racism in the province and is expected to release her report in September.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 20, 2022.