Poundmaker’s says bank’s actions were “racially motivated”

February 9, 2016

Poundmaker’s Lodge is calling for First Nations and allies to close their accounts and boycott TD Canada Trust.

“Take your valuable business elsewhere,” said Executive Director Brad Cardinal. Poundmaker’s Lodge, a long time client of TD Canada Trust, has begun steps to close off its accounts following an incident on Feb. 5 that the board is referring to as discriminatory.

Last Friday, RCMP responded to a call from the TD Canada Trust branch on St. Albert Trail for a possible bank robbery.

Photo: (From left) Treaty 6 Grand Chief Tony Alexis lends his support to Poundmaker’s Lodge executive director Brad Cardinal and board chair Jim Brule.
(Photo: Shari Narine)

A customer in the bank’s parking lot, says Cpl. Sharon Franks with the RCMP K-Division, overheard a discussion about whether the alarms at the bank would work. The customer reported the conversation to a junior staff person, who then reported it to the acting branch manager. The RCMP were called by the bank and the customer.

The RCMP attended the scene, spoke to two people in a van parked in a disabled spot in what one officer referred to as a “jovial” conversation, says Franks, and the matter was resolved quickly.

“The way the world is now, people just have a more heightened awareness of what is around them…. If you overhear only a portion of a conversation it’s very easy to misinterpret what’s actually being said…. And from that, if the RCMP receives a call, we have an obligation to protect society, certainly from something that may appear as though it could be an escalated risk of violence and we have policies in place that we follow,” said Frank. She says none of the reports or notes she received on the incident referenced race or racial profiling. “I really think it was a set of circumstances that just lended to a misunderstanding.”

Cardinal holds that it wasn’t a matter of misinterpretation or misunderstanding but instead it was action that was “racially motivated.” A look out the bank window into the parking lot would have quickly identified the van in question as belonging to Poundmaker’s Lodge, one of the bank’s clients.

The lack of respect, assumption of guilt, and marginalization are all part of the systemic discrimination Indigenous people face daily, says Cardinal.

The overheard conversation was reported to have taken place between two people wearing hoodies, making their race unidentifiable, says Alicia Johnston, with TD Canada Trust corporate communications. Both the junior bank staff member and the acting bank manager responded as they had been trained: they notified the RCMP.  As the junior staff member stayed on the phone with the RCMP, the acting bank manager went out to assess the situation.  He attempted to talk to two people in the parking lot, but they did not respond. He went back into the bank to await the arrival of the RCMP and the two people entered the Poundmaker Lodge’s van. The acting bank manager, who has been severely criticized on social media, says Johnston, wants people to know that he is Metis.

“We’ve had a great relationship … with the Poundmaker’s Lodge. They’re customers, they’re valued clients and we’re big supporters of the work they do in the community. We frequently attend their annual powwow and are proud to sponsor it,” said Johnston.

The bank has repeatedly reached out to Cardinal, she says, both by phone and in-person, but have been snubbed. The only conversation that occurred was on Friday when Cardinal spoke to the acting bank manager and was “clearly quite upset” and alleging racism. Johnston says she understands that the people in the van went through a “tough experience,” to be questioned by the RCMP.

 “When somebody feels something, you can’t take away from how they feel,” said Johnston.

Cardinal, who denies having received telephone calls or voice mail from TD Canada Trust, says he wants a public apology from the bank.

“Saying you are sorry for what someone perceives is very different than apologizing for the actions of your employees,” Cardinal said.

Cardinal also takes issue with the RCMP and is demanding a public apology for how Poundmaker clients and staff were treated. He says the officer in charge was reluctant to listen to him when he asked that mischief charges be considered against the customer, who initiated the action, and that racism was what led to the incident.

Franks says individuals are entitled to lodge a complaint against the RCMP for perceived lack of service. However, the RCMP is not mandated to investigate charges of racism or discrimination and that needs to be taken up with Alberta Human Rights Commission.

Cardinal says a complaint will be filed with the AHRC.

Jim Brule, chair of the board for Poundmaker’s Lodge, says since posting the incident on social media last Friday, the response has been overwhelming.

“We have received support from coast to coast. We have heard the encouragement, the outrage and the push to act on behalf of our community and so we have,” he said.

Cardinal says if TD apologizes to the lodge and the clients for the incident then “I think we can begin some discussions and move toward a healthier place.”