Lubicon's Olympic Boycott

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Cartoon centre of controversy

A city committee chairman has accused the Calgary Herald of inciting violence against the Lubicon Lake band and any Indian person attempting to blockade the Olympic torch relay.

Andrew Bear Robe, a Blackfoot band member, and chairman of the city's Native Urban Affairs Committee charges that the Herald's depiction of Indian people in editorial cartoons are "morally reprehensible, slanted and stereotypical."

In a letter to Herald publisher, J. Patrick O'Callaghan, a copy of which has been obtained by Windspeaker, Bear Robe complains that a cartoon drawn by Vance Rodewalt, published March 15, "goes beyond public decency, political impartiality and objective comment."

The controversial cartoon depicts four Lubicon Lake Indians blockading a road and preventing an Olympic torch bearer from continuing his journey. The final frame shows the Indians left scorched by the Olympic flame.

This, says Bear Robe, "implicitly advocates violence against the Lubicon Lake Cree Indians and all Indians along the torch route should they attempt to put up a blockade."

Bear Robe adds that according to a recent article by Ombudsman Jim Scott, the Herald had admitted that Lubicon Lake Chief Bernard Ominiyak had never made a direct threat to blockade the Olympic torch relay but was merely responding to a question posed by reporters.

"Therefore Mr. Rodewalt's cartoon went far beyond the circumstantial facts and is in very poor taste."

In future, "Mr. Rodewalt should stick to the reported facts and not blow his editorial fictions out of acceptable proportions," adds Bear Robe.

The letter was read at the regularly scheduled Native Urban Affairs committee meeting April 16 and received unanimous support. However, several members complained that Petrol Canada, sponsors of the torch relay, had not reacted to the cartoon.

When contacted by Windspeaker, Petro Canada spokesman, Sandy Hunter, stated that the crown corporation had no intention of reacting. Hunter added that he felt the Committee's action was only fueling the fire.

"To react to this kind of thing only gives it credence. All they (NUAC) are doing is perpetuating the whole thing. We don't feel it is (the cartoon) a reflection of Petro Canada at all," said Hunter in an interview from his Calgary office April 23.

Herald cartoonist, Vance Rodewalt, who has been under fire for six weeks over the controversial cartoon, agrees with Hunter's comments and adds that he was "a little surprised" at the continued public outcry.

Rodewalt points out that he was merely reflecting the perceived reaction of the majority of Calgarians to the boycott of the Olympic Games.

"People are getting fed up with these groups trying to trip everyone up. We know from the amount of people applying to carry the torch that the people support the Games," he said.

Rodewald adds that many Indian people are often too sensitive over criticism and automatically consider any criticism to be racist.

"I for one am fed up with it. It's just counter racism. Indian people are not above criticism," he adds.

Several critics of the cartoon, including Bear Robe, have attacked the cartoon for portraying Indian people in buckskin and feathers.

"All Aboriginal peoples throughout Canada have long since progressed beyond the buckskin and beads era and to continue to portray them as such, as Mr. Rodewalt has done in his cartoons, is a form of high-handed bigotry," says Bear Robe.

However, Rodewalt says he gave the dress of the Indians a lot of thought before going ahead and portraying them in traditional costume.

"But just recently they (the Lubicon Lake chief and representatives) had returned from Europe where they had trotted around with their traditional clothes. It seems they don't mind as long as it's to their advantage ? when it suits them it's fine. If they dressed as every day people, in business suits, I would have portrayed them like that."

But Lubicon consultant Fred Lenarson says walt's statement was "baloney."

"Chief Bernard wore what he always wears, cowboy boots and blue jeans. Does he (Rodewalt) know how much buckskin outfits cost? Bernard can't afford that kind of money."

Lenarson says the Lubicon band hasn't responded to the cartoon other than writing to the Herald to deny the band had directly threatened to blockade the torch relay.

Since the publication of the cartoon, the Herald has received many letters of complaint, including from organizations such as the Committee against Racism, the Native Council of Canada and University of Calgary anthropologist Joan Ryan.

Herald Ombudsman Jim Scott replied to these criticisms, March 19, saying he did not feel the cartoon was racist.

"I think the cartoon was tacky and insensitive, not in its message, but the visual portrayal. The Indians are visually stereotyped and they are portrayed as a bunch of simpletons who are made to look stupid by the Olympic torch bearer. But racist, no. Cartoonists do that all the time to all kinds of people, using visual shorthand, and there is not racial intent."

However, Bear Robe is also upset with a later cartoon published March 29 portraying an Indian man dressed in traditional garb looking at a map of the road to self-government.

"The message is that Indians are lost," says Bear Robe, "The cartoon portrays a confused looking and stereotypical Indian."

Bear Robe closes his letter by appealing to O'Callaghan to take prompt action over the cartoons which says Bear Robe, only serves to "inflame the situation rather than make a positive contribution toward amicable solutions."

The Native Urban Affairs Committee is a Calgary city committee with a mandate to address issues and concerns raised by Aboriginal people within the city. It meets monthly in Calgary's city hall.