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Inter-racial couple vow to leave community after cross burning, car set on fire

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G

Gaborn

Member
cross-burning20n_597422gm-a.jpg


An inter-racial couple nearly driven from their Nova Scotia community when a cross was burned on their lawn is sick of living in fear and looking to leave after their car was found in flames on the weekend.

“This is strike two, we’re not waiting for strike three,” Michelle Lyon said Monday in a telephone interview from her home near Windsor. “When those two were arrested, we thought that was it. But now this.”

Ms. Lyon spoke shortly after returning from court, where one of the men charged in the cross-burning entered a plea of not guilty.

The lawyer for 19-year-old Justin Rehberg pleaded not guilty on his behalf, The Canadian Press reported, and his trial was set for October. His brother, 20-year-old Nathan Rehberg, will enter a plea next month. The men, who share a great-grandparent with Ms. Lyon, remain free on bail.

Defence counsel for the brothers could not be reached after court for comment.

RCMP spokeswoman Sergeant Brigdit Leger said that the vehicle fire on Saturday is being probed as suspicious. Investigators have not ruled out the possibility of a hate crime.

“At this point in time, we have not eliminated any possible motivation for this incident,” she said.

Ms. Lyon, who is white, and her fiancé, Shayne Howe, the only black man in tiny Poplar Grove, say they were awakened in February by shouts of “die nigger die.” They say a noose was dangling from a flaming cross on their lawn, but whoever did it was gone by the time Mr. Howe could get outside.

The incident shocked many in the province, as did the reaction of some prominent members of the black community who said they were not surprised at such overt hostility. One academic called it tangible evidence of the attitudes that cause some black people to call the province “the Mississippi of the North.”

It’s a legacy Nova Scotia is trying to shake. In February, Halifax apologized for the destruction of Africville, a black community in the city’s north end. And last week, the province offered a rare free pardon to Viola Desmond, who was arrested in 1946 and is sometimes called Canada’s Rosa Parks.

Mr. Howe and Ms. Lyon received a wave of support in person and through social media. The outpouring helped persuade them to stay in the town, but the second incident has renewed their desire to move to protect their children.

“You shouldn’t have to live in fear, the fear [of] what’s next” Ms. Lyon said Monday. “I built this house, so I have real emotional attachment. To make the decision to leave, I had to do that for the kids’ safety.”

She stressed that she didn’t want “to point fingers” at the alleged perpetrators of the earlier incident. But she can’t help but notice similarities.

“It’s hard to think it couldn’t be connected,” she said.

Ms. Lyons said that her Toyota Echo was being worked on to make it road-worthy and was parked in a relative’s driveway near her house. No one local could fail to know it was her car, she added, being the only such vehicle around and bearing a personalized licence plate.

“The family member called me and said, ‘your car’s on fire, you’d better get down here right away,’ ” she said. “The gas tank blew, it could’ve been potentially a very dangerous situation.”

That was in the early hours of Saturday. The car was burned so badly, she said, that firefighters were asking her what model it was.
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Story Here

It's sad there's still so much racism in the world.
 
way more

way more

Member
At least nobody will be charged with a hate crime. For you see, a greater injustice than chasing away a interracial by burning crosses and their car would be to charge someone with the crime of hate. Wakka-wakka.
 
H

Holepunch

Member
"Let's just see what those dastardly southern states are up to..."

Nova Scotia? Really? I thought Canada was above this.
 
G

Gaborn

Member
mac said:
At least nobody will be charged with a hate crime. For you see, a greater injustice than chasing away a interracial by burning crosses and their car would be to charge someone with the crime of hate. Wakka-wakka.
Click to expand...

Yup. Harassment, willful destruction of property, arson, man, I'd let those assholes off EASY
 
K

Kabuki Waq

Member
Holepunch said:
"Let's just see what those dastardly southern states are up to..."

Nova Scotia? Really? I thought Canada was above this.
Click to expand...


you have never gone deep into Quebec have you? NS was not that bad from what i heard :(
 
F

Firestorm

Member
Assholes better get used to this inter-racial marriage stuff btw.

Fifty-one per cent of second-generation Canadians (the children of immigrants) who identified as visible minorities were in a mixed union, compared to 12 per cent of immigrants. The rate was even higher among third-generation visible minorities, of whom 69 per cent were in racially mixed relationships.

[...]

About 75 per cent of the 29,700 couples in which at least one person was Japanese involved a pairing with a non-Japanese person, Statscan said. They were followed by Latin Americans and blacks.
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http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news...in-mixed-unions-statscan-says/article1540336/
 
Z

Zoltrix

Member
One academic called it tangible evidence of the attitudes that cause some black people to call the province “the Mississippi of the North.”
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This is my first time hearing this. I hope it isn't that bad there... Very disappointed NS.
 
G

Gaborn

Member
Zoltrix said:
This is my first time hearing this. I hope it isn't that bad there... Very disappointed NS.
Click to expand...

Just for my own curiosity I wonder how many crosses are actually burned in Mississippi yearly these days. I'm sure it happens and it's probably higher than the national average, but I bet it's still almost negligible these days.
 
P

Pterion

Member
mac said:
At least nobody will be charged with a hate crime. For you see, a greater injustice than chasing away a interracial by burning crosses and their car would be to charge someone with the crime of hate. Wakka-wakka.
Click to expand...
Well played.

*updates world map of places where a black man can live peacefully*

Kabuki Waq said:
you have never gone deep into Quebec have you? NS was not that bad from what i heard :(
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Pure laine, yea!
 
A

Alfarif

This picture? uhh I can explain really!
Shanadeus said:
People actually burn crosses to scare away others?
Wow, I thought that was fiction.
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No. My grandparents had a cross burned on their front lawn a long time ago. It was in Mobile, AL at the time.
 
K

Kinitari

Black Canada Mafia
I like the Canadian reactions in the thread, that's how I feel too kinda I'm like "What? Canada - the hell?". I guess people can be racist anywhere, I remember once I went with my girlfriend to Chalk River (I don't even know if that place is googalable it's such a small town) - and I was one of maybe two black people in that entire town. I went into a Church (wedding function) and all the young 4-7 year old girls and boys who didn't know any better stared the shit out of me, it was pretty awesome. I don't think it was anything mean spirited though, I was just like Santa, or the Tooth Fairy or Jesus to them, some make believe creature come to life.
 
G

Gaborn

Member
Shanadeus said:
I mean, I know they used to burn crosses.
But had no idea they still did, surely it can't be a common occurrence?
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preeeeeeeeeeeeeeetty sure it's relatively uncommon even in the deepest part of the Southern US. It's just not culturally/socially accepted as "normal" anymore or "acceptable" generally, even if you live in an area that still has negative attitudes towards blacks.
 
P

Pterion

Member
Kinitari said:
I like the Canadian reactions in the thread, that's how I feel too kinda I'm like "What? Canada - the hell?". I guess people can be racist anywhere, I remember once I went with my girlfriend to Chalk River (I don't even know if that place is googalable it's such a small town) - and I was one of maybe two black people in that entire town. I went into a Church (wedding function) and all the young 4-7 year old girls and boys who didn't know any better stared the shit out of me, it was pretty awesome. I don't think it was anything mean spirited though, I was just like Santa, or the Tooth Fairy or Jesus to them, some make believe creature come to life.
Click to expand...
Your gf isn't somali?
 
K

Kinitari

Black Canada Mafia
Pterion said:
Your gf isn't somali?
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Ethiopians do love their Somalians, but no, my girlfriend is white as... well... as white as it comes, Icelandic, French, German and some other white stuff.

And if it wasn't clear, I am Ethiopian =p.
 
F

Firestorm

Member
Kinitari said:
I like the Canadian reactions in the thread, that's how I feel too kinda I'm like "What? Canada - the hell?". I guess people can be racist anywhere, I remember once I went with my girlfriend to Chalk River (I don't even know if that place is googalable it's such a small town) - and I was one of maybe two black people in that entire town. I went into a Church (wedding function) and all the young 4-7 year old girls and boys who didn't know any better stared the shit out of me, it was pretty awesome. I don't think it was anything mean spirited though, I was just like Santa, or the Tooth Fairy or Jesus to them, some make believe creature come to life.
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Hahaha, that's like when someone - not even in a relationship, but just a friend - is at some sort of family function. If they're me and my friends' age and with us, we just straight up tell them "everyone is going to stare at you". Otherwise, we stare at all the people staring at them :lol I'm not even talking little kids. Adults too. Doesn't matter if you're White, Black, Asian, as long as you aren't Brown you're gonna get stared at!
 
P

Pterion

Member
''Even in this day and age, Kevin Weekes had a banana thrown at him at the Bell Centre.''

Guess they've learned something from the european soccer games.
 
G

GSG Flash

Nobody ruins my family vacation but me...and maybe the boy!
I heard about this couple a few months ago. Could have seen this happening in Alberta but not NS. Though, judging from my dad's impression of the people in the maritimes when he went there, this isn't too surprising.
 
D

Dreams-Visions

Member
GSG Flash said:
I heard about this couple a few months ago. Could have seen this happening in Alberta but not NS. Though, judging from my dad's impression of the people in the maritimes when he went there, this isn't too surprising.
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really surprising to me. I guess because so many African-Americas (then just slaves) defected to Canada. freed slaves too coming from America and the Caribbean.

there's a reason why Caribana is held in Canada...and is fucking awesome.

20750271202152d297f.jpg


the Caribbean/African-Canadian presence is strong. and *BEAUTIFUL*.

/me will be at Caribana 2010.
 
U

USD

Member
Dreams-Visions said:
really surprising to me. I guess because so many African-Americas (then just slaves) defected to Canada. freed slaves too coming from America and the Caribbean.

there's a reason why Caribana is held in Canada...and is fucking awesome.

20750271202152d297f.jpg


the Caribbean/African-Canadian presence is strong. and *BEAUTIFUL*.

/me will be at Caribana 2010.
Click to expand...
canadianvisa.jpg
 
G

GSG Flash

Nobody ruins my family vacation but me...and maybe the boy!
Dreams-Visions said:
really surprising to me. I guess because so many African-Americas (then just slaves) defected to Canada. freed slaves too coming from America and the Caribbean.

there's a reason why Caribana is held in Canada...and is fucking awesome.

the Caribbean/African-Canadian presence is strong. and *BEAUTIFUL*.

/me will be at Caribana 2010.
Click to expand...

Caribana is in Toronto, the most multicultural city on the planet, there's no chance you would see a Caribana in the maritimes(maybe a small one in Halifax, but even that's a long shot).
 
D

Dreams-Visions

Member
GSG Flash said:
Caribana is in Toronto, the most multicultural city on the planet, there's no chance you would see a Caribana in the maritimes(maybe a small one in Halifax, but even that's a long shot).
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yea, I see that now. I had always thought of Canada being less racially polarized than America.

I was kinda hoping Canada had just...missed...that whole race thing that infected the countries to its south.

guess not.
 
B

Boombloxer

Member
DeaconKnowledge said:
Nova Scotia? Really?

Not to say racism can't exist anywhere, but that was the last place I would have expected it.
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Well, it's not totally out of character from what I've heard.
 
N

Nakazato

Member
Dreams-Visions said:
really surprising to me. I guess because so many African-Americas (then just slaves) defected to Canada. freed slaves too coming from America and the Caribbean.

there's a reason why Caribana is held in Canada...and is fucking awesome.

20750271202152d297f.jpg


the Caribbean/African-Canadian presence is strong. and *BEAUTIFUL*.

/me will be at Caribana 2010.
Click to expand...
airplane.gif

but the story is all kinds of fucked up
 
LQX

LQX

Member
I will never get some racists especially the ones that never or rarely seem to come in contact with the people they hate. The guy is the only black person in the community so its not like they have had issues with other blacks.
 
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