THUNDER BAY – At last night’s City Council meeting Current River Councillor Andrew Foulds brought forward a resolution seeking a deferment on ratification of a motion to demolish Dease Pool. That resolution was voted down by a majority of Councillors.
That move was brought about after a letter was sent to Councillors and the City from Chief Donny Morris of Kitchenuhmaykoosib Inninuwug.
Councillors Andrew Foulds, Aldo Ruberto, Peng You, and Shelby Ch’ng were in favour of the motion.
Here is the text of another letter sent to Thunder Bay City Manager Norm Gale from Kitchenuhmaykoosib Innunuqug (KI First Nation) that was also sent to NetNewsLedger:
Kitchenuhmaykoosib Inninuwug would like to have a conversation about the closure of Dease Pool. We see Dease Pool as a safe, culturally appropriate and a positive relationship-building tool between our communities.
We are concerned that the City of Thunder Bay neglecting the need for building safe neighbourhoods in all its wards including the wards with high concentrations of Indigenous Youth and their families.
Kitchenuhmaykoosib Inninuwug wants to start a dialogue to help bring solutions to many of the issues now facing the city that involve our community members.
As we are well aware there is an epidemic of meth, opiate and other substance abuse in Thunder Bay and our community members who live there are being negatively affected by the infiltration of gangs from southern Ontario.
We believe there needs to be a strategy in place that not only keeps these positive, life affirming community assets in place, but together we can build a strategy to deal with all community members, ours and Thunder Bay’s. Together we can make this happen.
MaryEllen Thomas
KI Child & Family Advocate
Kitchenuhmaykoosib Inninuwug
Child & Family Advocacy Center
Thunder Bay, ON
