THUNDER BAY -- Thunder Bay City Council's failure to support a call for the resignation of Senator Lynn Beyak from the Senate has met with condemnation from Indigenous leaders in the city.
The motion, put forward by Councillor Shelby Ch'ng, was lost in a 6-6 tie, although Ch'ng was absent from Monday night's council meeting.
Nishnawbe Aski Nation Grand Chief Alvin Fiddler and Fort William First Nation Chief Peter Collins issued a joint statement on Tuesday that emphatically criticized the councillors who voted against the motion.
Fiddler called the decision "unconscionable" and "deeply insulting."
The NAN Grand Chief said that, on the heels of last month's signing of a statement of commitment with the city to fight racism, "Council's failure to act is extremely disappointing and goes against the spirit of that commitment."
Fiddler went on to accuse members of council who didn't support the motion of using excuses that are "cowardly and an embarrassment for Thunder Bay and northwestern Ontario."
In his part of the joint statement, Collins described the failed vote as "another setback in the development of positive relationships with the municipality."
The Fort William First Nation chief said some members of council had demonstrated a lack of knowledge and understanding, and he called that "a barrier to the reconciliation we are working so hard to achieve."
