Letters, Oct. 7

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 07/10/2024 (644 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Unimaginable suffering

Re: ‘You were wrongfully convicted’ (Oct. 4)

I was deeply moved and distressed to see the picture of Clarence Woodhouse on the front page of the Free Press, beneath the words “Third Indigenous man declared innocent in the 1973 Winnipeg slaying.”

It is hard to put into words the intense emotions that arise from such an unimaginable ordeal. While the court’s declaration of his innocence brings some relief, the overwhelming truth is that no one can give him back the years of his life spent in prison for a crime he did not commit.

How does one even begin to comprehend what Mr. Woodhouse has endured? His youth, his hopes, and his dreams were stolen from him. The question, “How do you feel?” — though well-intentioned — feels almost inhumane in this context. It is impossible for us to understand the depth of the suffering, loneliness, and loss he has borne all these years. His family has also suffered, deprived of their loved one’s presence.

What is most painful is that justice, though finally served, came far too late. While he may walk free today, no apology, no compensation, and no declaration of innocence can ever repay what he has lost. His life cannot be rewound, and the years he spent unjustly imprisoned can never be recovered.

This case reminds us of the systemic injustices that continue to plague Indigenous communities. This is not just about one man’s wrongful conviction; it is about the deep-rooted issues of racial bias, inequality, and the failure of our justice system. Mr. Woodhouse’s suffering should be a wake-up call for all of us. How many more will have to endure such a fate before we truly address the flaws in our system?

I hope that in the wake of this heartbreaking revelation, we do not just shake our heads in sympathy and move on. We must demand accountability, reform, and most of all, justice for all who have been wronged by a system that failed them.

Yog Rahi Gupta

Winnipeg

Time for a review

Re: Public school board candidate decries FN residents’ exclusion (Oct. 4)

While I am neither a First Nations person nor a resident of Mountain View school district, I found this article very distressing.

It seems unconscionable that this example of systemic racism has persisted. Of course on-reserve First Nation people should “have a say in choosing the people making decisions about the public schools their children attend.”

I urge the education minister to make a review of the Manitoba Schools Act an immediate priority.

Lynn Baket

Winnipeg

Exhibit inappropriate

Re: Children, museums and sponsors (Think Tank, Oct. 3)

Kudos to Danae Tonge for writing about the Manitoba Dairy sponsorship of the Children’s Museum.

As a non-profit geared towards children, promotion of a substance proven harmful to human, planet and animal health is shameful.

Institutions that are responsible for educating children should not be taking money from organizations whose only interest is their bottom line, not the children’s well-being.

Laura Potts

Winnipeg

Foul plan

Re: Community composting to begin Oct. 15 (Oct. 3)

The City of Winnipeg’s idea to offer composting depots literally stinks! Who will be bothered to store kitchen scraps for days and transport to the designated depots?

Why can’t we instead promote backyard composting, for example by offering subsidized compost bins? The city — better yet, the province — for less than $1 million could buy 20,000 bins at a volume purchase price of $50 (or less) and offer them to residents at $25 apiece, free for low-income families. Add another $250,000 to hire high school students as an eco-employment program to work as composting consultants for residents new to composting. At the Green Party of Manitoba, of which I am president and co-deputy leader, we have long advocated for promoting backyard composting.

This would go so much further than the program currently being suggested by the city. Contrary to public misconception, backyard composting is actually very easy and has so much upside. It lessens the load on our landfills, reduces greenhouse gas emissions, and produces valuable gardening material.

Most of all, it shows our young people there are ways to be eco-conscientious while at the same time reducing our tax burden and being fun, all at once!

Dennis Bayomi

Winnipeg

Well-worn paths

When people talk about work being done in affluent versus non-affluent neighborhoods, they are overlooking the fact that Winnipeggers from all over the city use the roadways, bridges, parks, etc. This is a totally narrow-minded perspective.

I worked in the north part of the city and traveled daily from the south end over the Arlington Bridge.

The Waverley Street underpass is used by an enormous number of university students, people working in various industrial areas and other work sites. They come from all over the city. This underpass was under consideration for decades before being constructed.

I hope it doesn’t take as long to make the Arlington usable again!

Ellen Karr

Winnipeg

Leave politics out of case

Re: Justice minister rejects call for third-party review of Crown decision in Jordyn Reimer death (Oct. 3)

Please stop playing politics with these poor grieving parents.

The idea that an individual citizen without training can decide whether or not to hand over property that is rightfully another persons and that person uses it to cause death is a ridiculous premise. It’s keys. Not a gun or knife. There is no way that an individual even, if they thought the other person was intoxicated, has a right to withhold their basic property.

If we declare keys as a weapon, we are on a slippery slope that opens up every driving and non-driving person to the use of keys to start a car as criminal liabilities. These poor parents should have received justice in the courtroom with the man who decided to drive and his mother who decided to cover up his crime to the point of lying to authorities about the death he caused. Those are crimes. They deserved better.

Debra McCormack

Winnipeg

Trust your instincts

Re: Opaque diagnosis (Oct. 1)

I was so sorry to hear about Heather Brister’s breast cancer story.

In 2013 at age 51 I had a similar experience. I felt a lump in my left breast and saw my doctor. Due to the fact that I had a screening mammogram at age 50 years old that was clear, I was told the lump probably wasn’t anything.

I was sent for another mammogram which also showed nothing. I could feel the lump which was higher up on my chest and I believed the mammogram had missed it. I pursued it with my doctor. She finally arranged for an ultrasound.

During the ultrasound the tech called for a doctor almost immediately. I had a biopsy 20 minutes later.

It was Stage 1 lobular cancer. I went through a lumpectomy, chemotherapy (as there were two lumps, not one), radiation and I was on medication for five years.

At followup mammograms, one radiologist noted that I had dense breast tissue. Given that mammograms had missed my first breast cancer, she recommended that I get yearly breast MRIs. I am so thankful for that.

All I can say is listen to your body, trust your instincts and advocate for yourself if you feel something is not right.

It could save your life.

Laura Roberts

Winnipeg