The events of the past few days have ignited a heated
conversation in the Killam community.
Community members, former community members, neighbours and others have
passionately weighed in on this topic. I
personally have fielded calls, texts, etc., from many of you.
Now it’s my turn to share my thoughts.
First and foremost, I fundamentally believe that if one
person, through words or actions (or inaction), causes another person to be or feel
hurt, then effort should be made to lessen or eliminate that hurt. This is a part of my core beliefs and I will
not waiver from it.
I believe the sign in question is hurtful to some
people. You may argue that some first
nations folks don’t care if they are referred to as ‘Indians’ and that is
likely true, but it is obvious to me, judging by the social media storm, that
there are many who do care.
Even if you don’t believe this is an issue, others
do. And it reflects on our
community.
Secondly, my wish is that our community be a viable place
to live for the next generation – I want my grandchildren to be able to choose
Killam if they desire. We need to make
the right decisions now to make that a reality for them. We need to understand how our decisions now
impact the community in 20, 30, 50 or more years.
The goal of Council should be to achieve modest growth in
population and the business sector.
Failure to do this means our municipality is not financially sustainable
in the long term. However, what is the
likelihood that a progressive business owner will invest in Killam, or that families
with school aged children will choose to move here, when a simple web or Facebook
search reveals that we are not friendly to a particular group (or groups) of
people. Add to that the events of the
past few days and you can see we have a big problem.
This not about a hockey game or a playoff series. If you really believe it is then you are
mistaken – this is far bigger than that.
Some comments have questioned the dedication of
Councillors to our community. I for one
will happily put my community service track record up against anyone else. For all my adult life I have been involved in
community work, serving as a member, executive member, treasurer, chairperson,
etc. on almost every organization or committee that existed in the Town of
Killam. Our family has personally
invested in this community. Our family
business has invested heavily in the community, and has donated to every silent
auction & fundraiser we were made aware of.
Others on Council have a similar story.
So don’t question our commitment.
Some have stated that Council is not supporting the will
of the electorate. I believe the role of
an elected representative, at any level, is to make decisions based on what
they think is best for the community.
This isn’t about making the popular decision; it’s about making the
right decision, and I will always choose the right decision. If you are not happy with my performance you
have a chance to dump me at the next general election. This is how democracy works.
Some comments coming to Council have been of a personal
nature. This is simply wrong. Your Council has stepped up and committed
hundred of hours of work with the goal of making our community the best it can
be, nothing less. I know that each of my
colleagues would be happy to debate any issue with you. But personal attacks are never appropriate.
I am proud of the sports history of our community, and
agree it should be celebrated. (By the
way, I have served as a board member for the Killam Indians Hockey Club,
representing the team at the league level and with Hockey Alberta.) I believe that we can find another way to pay
tribute to those teams and players. But
I believe the signs have to come down.
I know many will still disagree with my position and will
post their comments here. However, if
you agree with me, in whole or in part, you too need to post a comment. It’s important that we get feedback from all
of our citizens.
Please carefully consider where you stand on this
issue. This is not as simple as whether
a sign stays up or is taken down; this will define, for the world to see, who
we are as a community.
Thank you.
Regards,
Bud James
Mayor
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