The Heiltsuk Nation says BMO’s announcement of an Indigenous Advisory Council would normally be a good first step.
But a statement from the First Nation says the bank’s continued denial that racism and racial profiling caused two of their members to end up in handcuffs mars the development.
Maxwell Johnson and his granddaughter were arrested by police after trying to open a bank account for the girl December 20.
The Nation says the banks ove to assemble the advisory body feels very much like a reactive gesture or a PR effort.
The Heiltsuk says BMO and the Council need to reach out to the Nation and “stop denying what actually happened.”
The Heiltsuk Tribal Council says it will be announcing more steps to fight racism in B.C. in the coming week.
