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Winnipeg Free Press - ONLINE EDITION

CFS gets custody of two children of accused white supremacists

By: Bruce Owen

Posted: 02/11/2010 1:12 PM | Last Modified: 02/11/2010 3:24 PM | Updates

Two young children at the centre of a custody case involving alleged white supremacist views will continue to live with their foster parents as permanent wards of Child and Family Services, a judge ruled today.

"What is clear from all of the evidence is that these two children have been exposed to a whole constellation of parental inadequacies," Court of Queen’s Bench Judge Marianne Rivoalen’s said in a written decision.

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"At the end of the day, this case was not so much about racism as it was the protection of children from poor parenting."

Those close to the case say Rivoalen’s decision is the best one for the girl and her younger stepbrother, but add Child and Family Services will have to step up to the plate at some point to help the biological mom reunite with her kids.

Both children were apprehended by CFS in early 2008 after the girl went to school with drawings of swastikas on her and the words "White Pride" and "Heil Hitler" on her.

The girl’s stepfather had asked the court for guardianship of his biological son and his stepdaughter, but his claim was dismissed.

Rivoalen also dismissed the constitutional question of freedom of expression.

Biological mom and the stepfather said they followed the Norse Odinist religion and that the swastika was a religious symbol.

Rivoalen said she didn’t accept that claim for one moment.

"It is apparent that (biological mom) used her child’s body as a personal billboard to espouse racist views," the judge said in a written decision. "(She) sought celebrity, sacrificed her children’s dignity on the alter of sensationalism and achieved some notoriety.

"That was a pathetic cry for attention."

The biological mom of both children said today she will ask for a review of the decision in a year.

She said she has recently moved back to Winnipeg from Montreal in the hope of being closer to her children.

She said CFS has offered some assistance that she hopes will one day allow her to see her kids. She has not seen them since March 2008.

She also said she has severed her relationship with the stepfather and his friends with the goal of putting her life and family back together.

bruce.owen@freepress.mb.ca