Ryan White, CTV Calgary
The family of Colton Crowshoe gathered for a peaceful walk in downtown Calgary on Saturday to bring attention to ongoing issues between Canada’s First Nations youth and police.
In July, the body of 18-year-old Colton Crowshoe was found in a NE pond. The cause of Colton’s death has not been released but the death has been ruled a homicide.
The grisly discovery followed the Crowshoe family’s request for police assistance in locating the teenager who had not returned following a night at a friend’s house. According to the family, police downplayed Colton’s disappearance, stating an 18-year-old may not want to be found. Three weeks after their initial call for police help, Colton’s body was found.
Jimmy Crowshoe, Colton’s father, said his son disappeared two days after being taken into police custody for loitering. The teenager was not charged and returned home with bruises and scratches on his face.
“When he came home, his face was all pushed up, scraped. He was crying, the cops that did that to him. Cops wouldn’t give him a badge number,” Jimmy Crowshoe said in a July interview with CTV.
Colton’s aunt, Danielle Crowshoe, organized Saturday’s event to ensure her nephew’s legacy will live on in the family’s ‘fight for social justice’ for First Nation youth who encounter racial profiling, brutality and lies in their interactions with police.
“Police often see First Nations as less worthy victims and, as a result, requests for assistance are often ignored and downplayed as in this case with my nephew,” said Danielle Crowshoe. “Colton, like many other First Nations across Canada, is proof of how the system that is supposed to help us, ultimately fails us.”
The ‘Justice for Colton Crowshoe’ walk was held in advance of the September 30 Calgary Police Commission public meeting in the hope the message of the peaceful event will be heard.