Lawyer Neil Seeman objects to our judges' understanding of native Indians

Lawyer Neil Seeman objects to our judges' understanding of native Indians

Nipawin - Friday, December 7, 2001 - by: Mario deSantis

sentencing
Neil Seeman article's on our double standard for administering justice, one for native Indians and the other for everybody else is worth of attention. Mr. Seeman compares the case in which aboriginal Tanis Gladue stabbed fatally her husband and got away with a three year sentence, while former Saskatoon policemen Dan Hatcheen and Ken Munson can face up to 10 years in prison for their conviction of unlawful confinement of an intoxicated aboriginal man.

judges
I am strongly opposed to any double standard of justice, however how can we socially justify the depraved predicament of most native Indians? Our native Indians have lost any culture, they are poor, they are discriminated against, they have been abused, they have lost their souls and they live in an environment of violence. As I mentioned, I am not supporting a double standard of justice, but whenever society is unwilling to address the social predicament of native Indians, then I certainly agree with our judges and have a double standard of justice.

systemic racism
Mr. Seeman knows that male treaty Indians are twenty-five times more likely to be incarcerated in a provincial jail as non-natives, and sarcastically he puts it down to "systemic" racism. Not happy of this putting down, Mr. Seeman equates the native "systemic" racism to the systemic sexism experienced by men as they make up 98 percent of the criminal population while they compose 49 percent of the general population. We want to remind Mr. Seaman that not all people are born with equal social opportunities and this is especially so for our native Indians. I specifically remember Alberta Judge John Reilly saying that crime in native communities reflects both the corrupt behavior of their leadership and their dysfunctional environments.

judges identify wrongs
We must congratulate again our judges as they keep identifying the wrongs of our society. Yesterday, they recognized the need of awarding punitive damages to employees wrongfully dismissed and abused by their employers, and today they recognize the special predicament of our native Indians.

future
Personally, I look forward when we will have one justice system for all as that means that native Indians will have a social chance to live meaningful lives as anybody else.

---------------References

Two kinds of justice is no justice at all, by Neil Seeman, December 6, 2001 The Globe and Mail

We remember Pamela George, by Injusticebusters. In December 1995, Pamela Jean George, a 28-year-old mother of two, was beaten to death. Steven Kummerfield and Alex Ternowetsky were convicted by jury of manslaughter for the murder and sentenced to 6-12 years... The verdict infuriated Chief Lindsay Kaye of the Sakimay Indian band, who told reporters outside the courtroom "All this goes to prove to me is that there are two justice systems. One justice system for white people and one justice system for the Indian people. It's all right for a white person to kill an Indian person. Nobody cares if an Indian person dies." http://injusticebusters.com/index.htm/Saskaoon_police_sex.htm#anchor1872248

Our Saskatchewan Justice System Is Rotten to the Core, by Mario deSantis, February 19, 2000

Racism in the Justice System http://www.crr.ca/EN/MediaCentre/FactSheets/eMedCen_FacShtRacismInJusticeSys.htm

Judge John Reilly is a hero: a reaffirmation of individual rights, by Mario deSantis, September 6, 2000

Editor's note: Neil Seeman is a Toronto lawyer who studied public health at Harvard. He was a member of the National Post editorial board and a prominent conservative and associate of Steven Harper. He posts his writing very widely on various conservative and right wing publications and you might get some basic idea about his outlook on life by looking over this odd piece on intellectual equality.



Lawyer Neil Seeman objects to our judges' understanding of native Indians

Nipawin - Friday, December 7, 2001 - by: Mario deSantis

`sentencing`	Neil Seeman article's on our double standard for administering justice, one for native Indians and the other for everybody else is worth of attention. Mr. Seeman compares the case in which aboriginal Tanis Gladue stabbed fatally her husband and got away with a three year sentence, while former Saskatoon policemen Dan Hatcheen and Ken Munson can face up to 10 years in prison for their conviction of unlawful confinement of an intoxicated aboriginal man.

`judges`	I am strongly opposed to any double standard of justice, however how can we socially justify the depraved predicament of most native Indians? Our native Indians have lost any culture, they are poor, they are discriminated against, they have been abused, they have lost their souls and they live in an environment of violence. As I mentioned, I am not supporting a double standard of justice, but whenever society is unwilling to address the social predicament of native Indians, then I certainly agree with our judges and have a double standard of justice.

`systemic racism`	Mr. Seeman knows that male treaty Indians are twenty-five times more likely to be incarcerated in a provincial jail as non-natives, and sarcastically he puts it down to "systemic" racism. Not happy of this putting down, Mr. Seeman equates the native "systemic" racism to the systemic sexism experienced by men as they make up 98 percent of the criminal population while they compose 49 percent of the general population. We want to remind Mr. Seaman that not all people are born with equal social opportunities and this is especially so for our native Indians. I specifically remember Alberta Judge John Reilly saying that crime in native communities reflects both the corrupt behavior of their leadership and their dysfunctional environments.

`judges identify wrongs`	We must congratulate again our judges as they keep identifying the wrongs of our society. Yesterday, they recognized the need of awarding punitive damages to employees wrongfully dismissed and abused by their employers, and today they recognize the special predicament of our native Indians.

`future`	Personally, I look forward when we will have one justice system for all as that means that native Indians will have a social chance to live meaningful lives as anybody else.

---------------References
	Two kinds of justice is no justice at all, by Neil Seeman, December 6, 2001 The Globe and Mail

	We remember Pamela George, by Injusticebusters. In December 1995, Pamela Jean George, a 28-year-old mother of two, was beaten to death. Steven Kummerfield and Alex Ternowetsky were convicted by jury of manslaughter for the murder and sentenced to 6-12 years... The verdict infuriated Chief Lindsay Kaye of the Sakimay Indian band, who told reporters outside the courtroom "All this goes to prove to me is that there are two justice systems. One justice system for white people and one justice system for the Indian people. It's all right for a white person to kill an Indian person. Nobody cares if an Indian person dies." http://injusticebusters.com/index.htm/Saskaoon_police_sex.htm#anchor1872248

	Our Saskatchewan Justice System Is Rotten to the Core, by Mario deSantis, February 19, 2000

	Racism in the Justice System http://www.crr.ca/EN/MediaCentre/FactSheets/eMedCen_FacShtRacismInJusticeSys.htm

	Judge John Reilly is a hero: a reaffirmation of individual rights, by Mario deSantis, September 6, 2000

	Editor's note: Neil Seeman is a Toronto lawyer who studied public health at Harvard. He was a member of the National Post editorial board and a prominent conservative and associate of Steven Harper. He posts his writing very widely on various conservative and right wing publications and you might get some basic idea about his outlook on life by looking over this odd piece on intellectual equality.