Heiltsuk Nation wants RCMP officer removed over social media posts

Members of the Heiltsuk Nation on B.C.'s Central Coast marched in protest to the Bella Bella RCMP detachment on Friday to call for the immediate suspension of a constable because of "the discovery of a series of racist posts" on the constable's Facebook page. 

Screenshots of the social media posts, distributed widely by the Heiltsuk Nation, along with a press release, show a series of selfies, photos and captions which the nation alleges are by RCMP Const. Adrian Robinson. 

The posts are from a social media account named "Adrian Reubenstein," but in its press release, the nation claims the account belongs to Robinson.

"You can't believe it on your first read," said elected Chief Councillor Marilyn Slett, recalling when the images first came across her screen.

"These posts are racist in nature and unacceptable by an RCMP officer serving in an Indigenous community," she told CBC News.

She is also calling on the RCMP to review its code of conduct and to include consultation from the nation in its future hires.

"This is our home, and we deserve to live in a home that is free from racism," she Slett.

What the images show

One image shows a person dressed in a uniform that the Heiltsuk describe as "colonial regalia" and seated in front of a union jack symbol. A comment on the photo, made by what is alleged to be Robinson's account, reads "Now, whats [sic] to be done about these pesky natives stirring up trouble in the colonies…?" The image is dated 2014. 

Another two images posted by the "Adrian Reubenstein" account and shared by the nation show a person, who does not appear to be Black, sitting in a chair. The person appears to be wearing a dark-coloured afro wig and has a fist raised in the air. One image is captioned "Black and Proud" and the other "where's my pick comb?"

A screenshot also shows two images of a person wearing a full green camo outfit weilding a gun. The person is crouching and aiming the weapon in one photo, and the post is captioned "This'l [sic] teach those jehovah's [sic] witnesses to come into my yard." The Heiltsuk Nation says these pictures are also from Robinson.

CBC News has not been able to reach Robinson to answer questions about the posts, nor has CBC News independently viewed the Facebook profile to verify its authenticity. It is now private.

Slett says that although posts were made before the officer was hired, that doesn't change their impact.

"We recognize that these are dated posts — they were not made yesterday. But for us that's not relevant. These are posts that he had up on his personal Facebook page for the world to see … he had a long time to take them down, which he obviously chose not to."

Slett said that a community member found the images and they began circulating online within the community, which prompted some to reach out to council members with concerns. She questioned why the posts hadn't been a reason to screen Robinson out from the hiring process.

"They're supposed to be screening for people of good character, and clearly this is bad character," she said.

Community responds

Prior to going public with the allegations, the Heiltsuk Nation said its lawyers sent private letters to the RCMP expressing their concerns about the photos. The nation said in a release that Slett received an anonymous, hateful letter soon after.

"Chief Slett has received an anonymous and extremely misogynistic and vulgar hate mail accusing her of being a 'race baitor'," reads the release. 

In the release, the nation described the timing of the hateful letter as "suspicious," because when it sent its letters to RCMP, only Heiltsuk leaders, RCMP leaders, and Robinson knew about the nation's complaint.

The community then went public with the issue. A video posted May 24 to the Heiltsuk Tribal Council's Facebook page shows community members marching through the town's streets to the RCMP detachment, carrying signs, with many singing in unison to the beat of a hand drum. Once they reach the detachment, several elders — some wearing button blankets — join the group.

Hereditary Chief Frank Brown made a speech at the rally urging the RCMP to take action against racism.

"It's totally unacceptable for the RCMP to cover up for this man — we're not having it," he said to cheers and applause from the crowd. 

RCMP investigating

CBC News reached out to RCMP to ask about the posts alleged to be Robinson's and about the wider complaints made. 

In response, RCMP Cpl. Madonna Saunders sent a statement, on behalf of Chief Supt. Brian Edmonds, North District commander. It said the RCMP is aware of the posts and of "an inappropriate anonymous email received by a local leader."

RCMP say they are investigating the letter and that with regard to the social media posts, it had "immediate discussions" with the Heiltsuk Nation as soon as it became aware of the posts.

"The Heiltsuk Nation were advised that we are looking at a non-conduct-related administrative process, as the timeframe for posts were prior to the individual's employment with our organization," the statement said.

RCMP said it is "committed to finding the right balance between addressing the concerns through a fair process and the importance of individuals/community having trust and confidence in their police officers and the RCMP."

But Slett said leadership isn't satisfied with their response, because members of the community aren't feeling safe to reach out to the local RCMP after they identified the constable's "racist belief system."

"When we can identify a constable in our community that holds these type of belief systems, it calls into question whether or not we'll be treated fairly, or be safe," she said.