a few simple questions

Dear Ladies and Gentlemen,

            My name is Gladys Radek. I am a Human Rights activist and speak out for those who can not do so. I have been acting on behalf of the First Nations people here in Canada for many years. In 2000, I launched a Human Rights case and proved, for the first time ever in Canada, “Systemic Racism”. On July 13, 2005 I won a historical challenge to address “systemic racism” which is very prevalent in Canada. This experience, to me, was just a tip of the iceberg.

            About two months after winning my case, another issue was brought to my attention from my family in Northern BC. My niece, Tamara Chipman, went missing and seems to just disappear off the face of this earth. Tamara was 22 when she went missing; she is my brother’s only daughter and she also left behind a two and a half year old boy. I was raised in northern BC and knew about the many other First Nations women who have disappeared and been found murdered over the last, at least, four decades. Some were related to me.

            Until 2002, highway 16 was never noticed. It was when Nicole Hoar, a white tree planter, went missing out of Prince George that the media started to pay attention, thus, dubbing it the Highway of Tears. Since then, the media claimed that there were no more disappearances for a two year period. After researching I have found that there were at least another 15 First Nations women who have disappeared in this area, 5 were within the same year that Nicole Hoar disappeared. (Bare in mind, Nicole could have easily been mistaken for a First Nations person. She was a tree planter and had been working for a couple of months in the sun which would provide a weathered tan, thus making her appear as a First Nations or Métis woman.) The media portrayed it that the disappearances of our young women had stopped after Nicole’s disappearance. This is proven through the internet links of the Missing and Murdered women not to be true. There is evidence, police reports and many horrific stories told about the injustice each family has endured through at least four decades of our missing women. There are numerous cases where the bodies have been found raped, beaten, dismembered and murdered and the police are doing nothing to justify their demise. There are numerous cases where the women have simply disappeared and nobody has had any closure on their whereabouts of their loved ones. So far in my research I have found over one hundred women from British Columbia, alone, who have disappeared. In those cases very few were solved. Actually about 95% are still unsolved and over half of the victims were found murdered. It is very obvious, to me, that there is overwhelming and significant proof of “systemic racism” through all levels of government, law enforcements, (city police and RCMP) and the provincial and federal justice system in dealing with this genocide of our First Nation women.

I am writing this letter to ask a few simple questions? Would it be possible for our leaders to ask for a public inquiry and a coroner’s inquest into the deaths of these women who have been found over the past four decades? Also, who is accountable for not investigating these cases?

            It is public knowledge that the police and RCMP have not investigated these matters in the proper manner. There are public articles from documentary filmmakers, Sharmeen Chinoy O”baid in the film the “Highway of Tears”, Christine Welsh in the film “Finding Dawn”, private investigator Ray Michalko in several news articles and many private citizens of every nationality who agree that the police are the ones who are not standing accountable for these First Nations women’s disappearances. It is also common knowledge that the law enforcements all across this country are proving to discredit their positions by taking the law into their own hands and continue to investigate their own when it comes to deaths in custody. They have been implicated in the Robert Pickton trial for not investigating the disappearances of the women in the Downtown Eastside.  I see no difference in this case than those of the missing and murdered women all across this country. They are all handled in the same manner.

            I attended the symposium held in Prince George, BC, for the victim family members in March 2006. Since then I have addressed these very same issues up to the top levels of government, provincial, federal, United Native Nations Society, Assembly of First Nations, Union of BC Indian Chief’s, United Nations, Native Women’s Association of Canada, World Peace Forum, and colleges and universities. I can assure you that after speaking out about this for the past two years, there has been absolutely nothing done about it. The RCMP is still not doing their jobs, which is widely publicized. There are absolutely no inquests being held for these women, simply because they are First Nations. Due to lack of trust in the law enforcements and all levels of government and the fact that our people are treated as disposable, there is not much hope in stopping this continuous circle of genocide. Our women are disappearing all over this country of Canada and yet we see no justice or closure.

            If a white woman or any other immigrated woman disappears the police and the media work together to find out what happened. I read the paper daily and find that when anything happens to a First Nations person, it is not made public. When our women go missing they simply make a file for missing person’s and leave it at that.

            The Robert Pickton trial has sensationalized him as a serial killer and the women, who were of First Nations decent, are represented as prostitutes and drug addicts. This leads the public to believe that all First Nations people are prostitutes and drug addicts. This theory makes me sick when I think of the beautiful young girls who disappeared off Highway 16 in northern BC. The majority of these girls were between the ages of 14-22. Many were attending school and all had loving families who watched out for them. I find it very hard to believe that these children were all involved with drugs and/or alcohol when they disappeared. Their lives were taken through violence and social acceptance with no options of recourse. I find it very disgusting that, in this day and age, the First Nations people are still suffering from the ongoing genocide by murder with the Canadian citizens, leaders and judicial system doing nothing to stop it.

            After giving it much thought, I wanted to write this letter on behalf of my First Nations people and myself to ask for a public inquiry into the unsolved murders of the First Nations communities across Canada.  I am working with the many family members at this time and a very long list of victims will be presented in the near future. We will seek the justice we deserve and hopefully get the answers we need to address these extremely tragic circumstances. We want to seek justice and closure for the beautiful women of our communities. What is happening here in Canada against our First Nations people is a crime against humanity and we want this on going genocide to stop!   

            Also attached is a petition of parties who agree with this request.

            I thank you, in advance for your invaluable time. I sincerely hope that you will help us find the closure that is so much needed for our future generations.

All my Relations,

Gladys Radek,

Wet su wit’en Nation

Filed under: Membership Letters