WANT SOME CHEESE WITH THAT WHINE Trudeau's comments 'unfair' about Church and residential schools: Toronto archbishop

The archbishop of Toronto expressed "great sorrow" Sunday for the abuse that took place at Canada's residential schools, though he insisted the prime minister was “unfair” in his calls for the Catholic Church to take more responsibility

© Provided by The Canadian Press

Cardinal Thomas Collins also said it was "very important" when Pope Francis held a moment of silent prayer Sunday in honour of Canadian Indigenous children who died at residential schools and the families who mourn them, despite the pontiff not offering an apology for the Church's participation in the schools.

Collins expressed sadness for the rampant suffering endured at the institutions, both in an interview with The Canadian Press and in remarks delivered at a service in Toronto.

He said the Church as a whole has also owned up to its role in the system and chastised Prime Minister Justin Trudeau for seeking further action.

"I would think that Mr. Trudeau and his government ... should join with us and with the Indigenous people in our journey together," Collins said in a telephone interview. "We want to work together. These types of sharp comments, which are not based on real fact, are most unfortunate."

As the Pope addressed his congregation Sunday in the heart of Vatican City, Collins was inviting his own assembly from Toronto's St. Michael's Cathedral Basilica to bow their heads and honour those who died in Canadian residential schools.

The system targeted Indigenous children for decades, and some 150,000 First Nations, Metis and Inuit children were forcibly sent to the institutions where many suffered abuse and even death.

The issue was propelled back into the national spotlight 10 days ago when the Tk'emlups te Secwepemc First Nation in British Columbia announced that the remains of 215 Indigenous children are believed to be buried at an unmarked site at the former Kamloops Indian Residential School. Ground-penetrating radar confirmed the findings, the First Nation said.

Pope Francis said he is following news of the findings "with pain" after leading the Angelus prayer on Sunday. "I join the Canadian bishops and the entire Catholic Church in Canada in expressing my closeness to the Canadian people traumatized by the shocking news," he said.

He did not mention Trudeau's call for him to apologize for the Catholic Church's role in Canadian residential schools, which came at a Friday news conference. Saskatchewan's Federation of Sovereign Indigenous Nations is also demanding an apology from the Pope, saying it is the right thing to do.

"This was genocide, and it should be acknowledged as such by the perpetrators, the Church, the Government, and the RCMP," the organization representing 74 of the province's First Nations said in a release Sunday.

In response to Trudeau, Collins pointed out that Pope Benedict XVI apologized in 2009 to a delegation from Canada's Assembly of First Nations for the abuse experienced by children in residential schools. Benedict called the children's treatment "deplorable" in the same address.

Collins also noted the Oblates of Mary Immaculate, who ran the Kamloops residential school, apologized in 1991.

Trudeau also said Friday he was "deeply disappointed" with the Church's position on releasing residential school records.

"We’re still seeing resistance from the Church, possibly from the Church in Canada," he said.

Collins called those remarks "unhelpful," noting that as far as he understands, the Oblates are releasing whatever documentation they have.

"But I totally agree that everything should be made known," he said, adding that any information that may be withheld should be released. "This whole residential school system was a terrible thing ... we have to repent of that and be deeply careful to ensure it never happens again."

Lawyer Mary Ellen Turpel-Lafond said she appreciates what seems to be a "heartfelt commitment" from the Cardinal to provide unmitigated access to records that would help family members identify residential school victims, especially those from the school in Kamloops.

But those in power have "taken positions contrary to the words expressed today," Turpel-Lafond, the director of the Indian Residential School History and Dialogue Centre at the University of British Columbia, said in an email Sunday.

She, too, called on "the highest authority in the Church" to apologize and direct that all records and archival material be released without exceptions.

"Leaving First Nations in limbo to engage with the dozens of church congregations, past and present, does not reflect a fulsome human rights approach," she said. "Canada needs to do better."

This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 6, 2021.

Sarah Smellie, The Canadian Press


Video: Trudeau calls for apology from the Catholic Church for role in residential schools (cbc.ca)

Pope Calls For Reconciliation, Healing Over Kamloops Residential School Discovery

 cbc.ca

Cardinal says PM's calls for church to release residential school documents 'uninformed'

Duration: 08:22 

Archbishop of Toronto Cardinal Thomas Collins told CBC's chief political correspondent, Rosemary Barton, that Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's comments calling on the Catholic Church to release records from its former residential schools were extremely 'unhelpful' and 'uninformed.'

Hundreds in convoy to Kamloops to show support for Indigenous Canadians

Darrian Matassa-Fung 1 day ago

© Global News A convoy consisting of more than 100 semi-trucks arrived in Kamloops on Saturday.

Horns were blaring on Saturday with truckers on a journey from Kelowna to Kamloops.

An Okanagan trucker organized a massive convoy to the site where 215 bodies of children were found at a former residential school.

West Kelowna trucker Mike Otto said when he heard the news of the horrific discovery -- he had to do something.


Ceremonies held across B.C. to honour children found in unmarked burial sites

Video: Conservative MP for Kamloops calls for action to support Indigenous communities (cbc.ca)


"I decided I needed to do something on Facebook, on Monday,” said Otto.

“And it just took off from there."

Read more: ‘This is just the tip of the iceberg’: Blood Tribe remembers 215 children found in Kamloops

The convoy arrived in Kamloops Saturday afternoon with hundreds of vehicles honking their horns in support.

Corinne Derickson, an indigenous woman who says her grandparents lived at residential schools, jumped at the opportunity to help organize the convoy.

“When Mike reached out to me to ride shotgun in the truck I was like hell yes," she said. "I want to be a part of this and bring attention, spotlight the truth. The truth needs to be revealed.”

The truckers left the Okanagan in the morning, growing with the addition of convoys from across B.C.

A few convoys came from the Lower Mainland, as well as others from across B.C.’s Interior.

Read more: First Nation works with SMU anthropologist to search site of former Shubenacadie Residential School

Otto says the support shown blew him away.

“It's unbelievable. Just putting out the call to everyone to coordinate this. It happened within a matter of hours,” said Otto.

“It's unbelievable just to see the support from the community and the truck drivers.”

The convoy also consisted of motorcycles, school buses and regular cars to make for hundreds of people coming together at the former residential school site.

Video: Dr. Kisha Supernant details the extensive work involved in investigating burial sites at residential schools

Statue of Egerton Ryerson toppled after hundreds rally in downtown Toronto

CBC/Radio-Canada 

© Evan Mitsui/CBC

 A statue of Egerton Ryerson, one of the architects of the residential school system, lies on the grounds of the university that bears his name after being toppled on Sunday.

The statue of Egerton Ryerson, considered one of the architects of the residential school system in Canada, was toppled and vandalized Sunday evening following a demonstration in downtown Toronto.

The act occurred at Ryerson University after an afternoon demonstration that was held in response to an announcement by the Tk'emlúps te Secwépemc First Nation on May 27 that preliminary findings from a survey conducted by a specialist in ground-penetrating radar indicated the remains of what could be 215 children buried on the site of a former residential school in Kamloops, B.C.

Since then, there have been calls from Indigenous professors and students to change the university's name and remove Ryerson's statue from campus for his role in the creation of Canada's residential school system.

It is not known how the statue was brought down, but a video posted to Twitter shows what appears to be a rope tied to the figure and people cheering as it comes tumbling down. CBC News has not verified the contents of the video or confirmed who filmed it.

Toronto police say they are aware of the incident and will investigate.

'It's a little bit of justice'

Craig St. Denis, who was at the campus where crowds gathered after the statue came down, said its toppling "marks the beginning of healing for an entire nation.

"It's important this statue has come down so we can raise awareness to what has been going on since the 1800s and the incorporation of the residential school system," said St. Denis, a Cree whose grandfather was in the residential school system.

Dishanie Fernando, a student at Sheridan College in Oakville, west of Toronto, said the statue should have come down a long time ago.

"The statue represents racism, the statue represent oppression. It should have been taken down a long time ago voluntarily by the Ryerson University. However, that did not happen."

"It's a little bit of justice I suppose for the Indigenous people, but not enough. It's just the beginning," Fernando said.

The university did not immediately respond to requests for comment by CBC News Sunday evening.

Earlier Sunday, hundreds of people rallied in Toronto in honour of the 215 children whose remains are believed to be buried at the Kamloops Indian Residential school site, based on the survey's preliminary findings.

In a tweet before the demonstration, Toronto police urged calm.

"While we appreciate that recent events have had a traumatic impact, we cannot tolerate acts of vandalism/violence. Officers will be on site to ensure the safety of everyone involved and will investigate/enforce as necessary."

At the afternoon rally, people listened to speakers at the Ontario Legislature, then walked east to the university where the statue is located. There was drumming and singing, and at that point, the statue was still standing.

Last week, the statue was vandalized and splattered with red paint. At the foot of the statue, people have placed hundreds of pairs of shoes to commemorate the children whose lives were lost at the Kamloops Indian Residential School.

Following the Kamloops discovery, Indigenous students at the university called on fellow students, faculty and alumni to stop using the name Ryerson in their email signatures, correspondence and on their resumes, urging them instead to call the school X University.

© Evan Mitsui/CBC Demonstrators strike the head of a toppled statue of Egerton Ryerson, one of the architects of Canada's residential school system, on Sunday evening.

In a statement posted to Twitter before the statue was felled, the university said: "We share in the grief and sorrow of our community at the discovery of the remains of 215 Indigenous children near Kamloops, and acknowledge that further and ongoing reconciliation is of vital importance."

It also said a task force created to examine Ryerson's legacy and collect feedback from community members is committed to delivering a final report, including recommendations regarding the statue and name of the university, before the fall semester.

Air Canada says senior executives to voluntarily return 2020 bonuses

MONTREAL — Air Canada says its senior executives have chosen to return their 2020 bonuses in response to "public disappointment."

© Provided by The Canadian Press

The airline company says in a news release the president and CEO, as well as executive vice-presidents of Air Canada, have volunteered to return their bonuses and share appreciation units.

Former president and CEO Calin Rovinescu, who retired in February 2021, says he will also donate his share to the Air Canada Foundation.

The statement does not include middle managers, whose bonuses made up more than $8 million of the $10-million bonus program, among those who are volunteering their bonuses.

Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland signalled her displeasure Wednesday over the multi-million dollar packages handed out to the airline's executives as the company negotiated a federal bailout, calling the bonuses "inappropriate."

The airline last Monday disclosed its annual proxy circular to shareholders that gave the bonuses to people the investor document called instrumental in the airline's survival over the past year as air travel plunged during the COVID-19 pandemic.

"Air Canada's leadership team is completely focused on Air Canada's recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic and preparations to welcome back furloughed colleagues and travelling customers as soon as possible," Sunday's statement says.

"The airline looks forward to continuing to work with all stakeholders, notably the Government of Canada on many fronts, including the safe re-start of our industry."

In April, the airline and government agreed to a $5.9 billion loan package that includes money to help refund passenger tickets, but also capped executive compensation at $1 million until 12 months after the loan is fully repaid.

The government also paid $500 million for a six per cent stake in the country's biggest airline, which Freeland said was done to ensure taxpayers could benefit once Air Canada's revenue rises when regular travel resumes.

In early 2020, senior executives and 3,200 management employees voluntarily agreed to total reductions of $11.5 million in their base salaries, subject to compensation through share appreciation units that might allow employees to recover some of the forgone salary if the share price rises higher in December 2022 than December 2020, the company says.

Freeland and Transport Minister Omar Alghabra said Canadians "are right to expect responsible corporate behaviour — particularly with respect to executive compensation — from companies receiving government financial support during the pandemic."

"While this situation could have been entirely avoided by Air Canada, we acknowledge this step in the right direction by the top five executives to repay 2020 bonuses and share appreciation units they received," they said in a joint statement Sunday night.

Video: Ottawa blasts Air Canada for $10M in senior executive bonuses (cbc.ca)
Duration 2:07

This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 6, 2021.

The Canadian Press

Pride fund launched to provide bursaries to LGBTQ2S+ students in Edmonton, Northern Alberta

Lauren Boothby 

The Edmonton Community Foundation has a new bursary aiming to reduce financial barriers for LGBTQ2S+ post-secondary students in Edmonton and Northern Alberta.

© Provided by Edmonton Journal People dance and wave rainbow flags in front of street preachers at the corner of 104 Street and Jasper Avenue, in Edmonton Friday June 4, 2021. Photo by David Bloom

University of Alberta graduate Shane Scott launched the Shane Scott Pride Fund last week at the beginning of Pride Month. Scott hopes to raise at least $10,000 in order to set up an annual bursary of $400 to help alleviate some student debt.


He said having a scholarship program dedicated to queer youth recognizes the experiences and difficulties they face.

“To have these types of awards in the community is a signal, I think for many people, that your experiences are valid and real, and that they do matter,” he said.

A 2018 poll from Forum Research found LGBTQS+ students are more likely to have higher student debt on graduation, take on a second job to pay off their debt, change their career path because of student debt, and have higher additional debt.

Scott said there’s a few reasons why this could be.

“Similar to my story — feeling the need to leave home. For me that was a journey of self discovery, but for some people that’s a choice of safety, or they’re being kicked out of their home either while they’re still in high school or when they’re going to university,” he said in an interview.

“Often that also means they’re losing financial support from the families, don’t have the safety net that other students may have, and so they end up taking on more debt … also credit card debt, and having to rely on less-than-ideal financing sources.”

On top of these difficulties, there’s discrimination and bullying, which can harm their mental health and impact job searches after their school is complete.

“The community, it’s not homogenous. And I think there’s also other barriers, including racism, ongoing settler (colonialism), transphobia — that has kind of further implications. Particularly when it comes to experience trying to get work,” he said.

Multiple bursaries, or a higher amount for a single award, can be given out if more funds are raised.

To qualify for the Shane Scott Pride Awards, students need to self-identify as an LGBTQ2S+ person, be planning on or currently attending a post-secondary institution in Canada, be an active member in the community and show financial need.

Preference will be given to youth involved in student government or advocacy and who have overcome adversity.

June is Pride Month in Canada.

lboothby@postmedia.com

@laurby

What's happening in Fairy Creek? An explainer on the fight over B.C.'s old-growth forests
Reuters

Since August 2020 protesters have been blockading logging roads near the Fairy Creek drainage on western Vancouver Island. The dispute has reignited a debate on whether there should be a moratorium on logging Canada’s ancient forests.

© Provided by National Post Protesters stand on debris of a cutblock as Royal Canadian Mounted Police officers arrest those manning the Waterfall camp blockade against old growth timber logging in the Fairy Creek area of Vancouver Island, near Port Renfrew, B.C., on May 24, 2021.

Where is Fairy Creek?

The Fairy Creek watershed is part of Tree Farm Licence 46, a 59,000-hectare timber harvesting tenure held by private logging company Teal Jones, near Port Renfrew on the southwestern side of Vancouver Island.

Since last year blockades have spread out to other sites within the license area, including the Caycuse watershed, but Fairy Creek remains a catch-all term for the protests.

What is at stake?

Protesters say they are trying to save the last intact watershed outside of a park or protected area on southern Vancouver Island, home to 1,000-year-old yellow cedars.

In British Columbia’s coastal region trees older than 250 years are defined as old growth. Old-growth forests support a greater diversity of plant and wildlife, including endangered marbled murrelet birds and northern goshawks.

'We do not welcome interference': When First Nations break with environmentalists

Of the 13 million hectares of old-growth forest left in B.C., the majority consists of high-alpine trees unsuitable for logging. The remaining valley-bottom trees are the crux of the conflict between the forestry industry and conservationists.

There are 3.6 million hectares of old-growth forest available for logging on public lands in B.C. and 50,000 hectares, an area more than eight times the size of Manhattan, are cut every year.

Why is old-growth so valuable to industry?

Old-growth trees yield “tight clear wood” without knots, favored for products like shingles and decking. The industry argues logging smaller second-growth trees alone would be uneconomical.

In 2019 the forestry sector contributed $13 billion, roughly 5 per cent, to provincial GDP, according to lobby group the B.C. Council of Forest Industries (COFI). Of that, $3.5 billion came from old-growth logging.

What has been happening?

Protesters set up their first camp last August, after an environmentalist using satellite imagery spotted a new logging road being built near the headwaters of Fairy Creek.

Since then other blockades have been set up in the area to protect stands of old-growth trees.

The B.C. Supreme Court granted Teal Jones an injunction in April, and police moved in to start breaking up camps and making arrests in May.

Activists remain camped in the forest and there has been an explosion in support on social media, with hundreds of new protesters joining the demonstrations.

Who is involved?

The blockades are being coordinated by environmental activists calling themselves the Rainforest Flying Squad.

Teal Jones is a private company based in Surrey, near Vancouver. The company, the world’s largest maker of cedar guitar heads, says although the Fairy Creek watershed is almost 1,200 hectares, only about 200 hectares are available for harvest.

The Pacheedaht First Nation, within whose territory Fairy Creek lies, is divided on the issue. The First Nation owns three sawmills and has signed a revenue-sharing agreement with the province for logging activities in its territory.

Alberta NDP's Notley promises to make Alberta green energy powerhouse

EDMONTON — Alberta Opposition Leader Rachel Notley says if elected in 2023, her NDP will work to make the province a powerhouse in renewable energy.

© Provided by The Canadian Press

Notley says that includes moving Alberta’s electricity grid to net-zero emissions by the year 2035.

She says an NDP government will also develop geothermal energy, hydrogen fuel and manufacturing of carbon fibre from bitumen.

Notley made the comments in a speech at the Alberta NDP 2021 convention, held online due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The party, led by Notley, won the 2015 election but lost to the United Conservatives in 2019, and is looking to win back government two years from now.

Notley says Premier Jason Kenney has failed on all fronts to confront the pandemic by introducing half measures that have failed to keep people safe from COVID-19.

And she says photos this week of Kenney and his inner circle appearing to violate health rules while dining on the patio roof of a building near the legislature grounds show Kenney is in it for himself.

“He’s no leader,” said Notley Sunday in the online speech.

“Those photos (are) showing the premier and his most senior ministers huddled around a table, on top of his private Sky Palace patio, not a care in the world. No masks, no distancing, no rules. Just whiskey, waiters, and white linen tablecloths.

“They reveal the real Jason Kenney: a man who refuses to let his own rules prevent him from living his best life – a life that you and I can’t have yet.”

Kenney has insisted the dinner was within public health rules because it was under the 10-person limit on outdoor social gatherings. But he has not addressed apparent violations of masking and distancing rules.

Two of his United Conservative backbench members and two cabinet ministers have criticized the event for breaking health rules.

Notley also received 98.2 per cent approval from NDP members in the party's leadership review.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 6, 2021.

Dean Bennett, The Canadian Press

Rural councillors say Kenney needs to start listening to Albertans

Michelle Bellefontaine

CBC JUNE 5,2021

© Facebook Alberta NDP Leader Rachel Notley campaigned with Cam Gardner (far right) when Gardner ran for the NDP in Livingstone-McLeod in the 2019 provincial election.

Rural Alberta politicians say the Premier Jason Kenney and his governing United Conservative Party need to start listening to and caring about the issues faced by ordinary Albertans.

"Listen. Listen to what people have to say," said Bill Tonita, a councillor with Strathona County council. "We are at a time right now where it doesn't seem to matter what the issue is, our government is not listening."

Tonita, Gabrielle Blatz-Morgan, councillor with the city of Wetaskiwin, Cam Gardner, councillor with the Municipal District of Ranchlands, and Karen Shaw, councillor with Sturgeon County, participated in a panel discussion Saturday at the 2021 Alberta NDP virtual convention.

Lethbridge-West MLA Shannon Phillips asked the councillors what their constituents would tell Kenney if they could talk to him face to face.

"They would say start doing the right thing for Alberta rather than for your party," Shaw said.

Blatz-Morgan said Kenney needs to take care of issues like the access to physicians and the new curriculum without turning them into political issues.

"I would definitely tell him it's time to start caring about the people that you serve," she said.

The Alberta NDP has started focusing on rural areas to get ready for the next provincial vote in 2023. Party organizers are setting up new constituency associations and reactivating old ones that have gone dormant.

They are also reaching out to people with progressive views, and hosting Zoom calls to discuss issues like physician shortages, a lack of high-speed internet, and coal mining in the Rocky Mountains.

The party lost all of its rural seats to the UCP in the 2019 election. But the NDP now sees an opportunity now that recent polls suggest both Kenney and the UCP have plunged in popularity.

Gardner, who ran as an NDP candidate in 2019, said the way to get elected in rural Alberta is look to for common ground in the issues most people are concerned about.

"Everyone wants doctors," Gardner said. "Everyone wants a curriculum that says that the earth is round, it actually circles the sun and that fossils aren't here to trick us."

Gardner said people in rural areas no longer trust Kenney and his government. Shaw suggested authenticity is also an issue.

"Putting on a plaid shirt does not make you rural," she said.

Double donations

The 2021 convention is the first for the NDP since it was forced out of government two years ago.

The NDP usually holds conventions every two years but last year's event was cancelled due to COVID-19.

The party has been on an upswing in the past year. In addition to rosy polling numbers, the NDP out-raised the governing party by about $15,000 in 2020, and more than doubled the UCP's donation totals in the first quarter of 2021.

Provincial secretary Brandon Stevens told the convention that the NDP attracted 12,000 new donors last year.

On Sunday, the delegates will hear a speech from party leader Rachel Notley, as well as vote on her leadership.

Notley received 97.8 per cent support from delegates in her last review at the 2016 NDP convention.

Video: Kenney has to choose between two unsavoury options, says political scientist (cbc.ca)

Pressure mounts on UNC in Nikole Hannah-Jones tenure dispute

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. (AP) — The pressure on trustees at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill to grant tenure to investigative journalist Nikole Hannah-Jones continued to mount Friday as a major funding partner joined the call to change her status and a sought-after chemistry professor decided not to join the faculty over the dispute.

In addition, The Baltimore Sun published an editorial in which it drew a parallel between Hannah-Jones and the Tulsa race massacre of 1921, describing it in a headline as “the whitewashing of American history,” a reference to The 1619 Project led by Hannah-Jones. Some believe conservative criticism of this project is at the heart of the decision by the UNC Board of Trustees to deny her tenure at the school of journalism and media.

Hannah-Jones, who won a Pulitzer Prize for her work on The 1619 Project for the New York Times Magazine, accepted a five-year contract to join the journalism school’s faculty as the Knight Chair in Race and Investigative Journalism. A trustee who vets submissions for tenure postponed consideration of Hannah-Jones’ application in January because of questions about her non-academic background, the head of the board of trustees said last month.

The school said little about why tenure wasn't offered, but then a prominent donor revealed that he had emailed university leaders challenging her work as “highly contentious and highly controversial” before the process was halted.

The foundation that endows the Knight chair encouraged the trustees to reconsider. Last week, Hannah-Jones issued a statement saying she had retained attorneys from the NAACP Legal Defense Fund as she considers legal action against the school. Dozens of members of the journalism school’s faculty have demanded an explanation.

Student leaders have joined faculty in demanding that trustees reconsider her tenure. A letter signed by professional athletes, writers and academics also assailed the university, saying the trustees “failed to uphold the first order values of academic freedom and the free exchange of ideas.”

A two-page ad appearing in The News & Observer of Raleigh last month featured 1,619 alumni and students at UNC-Chapel Hill who offered their support of Hannah-Jones and called on the school to grant the tenure request.

Dr. Richard Besser, president and CEO of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, asked in a letter to Board of Trustees Chairman Richard Stevens for assurances that Hannah-Jones “is being treated fairly and equitably in decisions regarding her appointment.” The letter was first reported by NC Policy Watch.

Besser cited what he called growing evidence showing the role that structural racism and discrimination play in health disparities for people of color in the U.S. It is in that context, he wrote, that he asked for reconsideration of tenure for Hannah-Jones.

“To honor our commitment to ethical conduct and practices, we ask that the UNC Board help us understand the steps it is taking to ensure that Ms. Hannah-Jones is treated fairly and equitably in decisions regarding her appointment,” Besser wrote.

While not directly addressing the tenure situation, university spokeswoman Joanne Peters Denny said in a statement that the school shares the foundation's commitment to addressing health and racial inequity, and considers the foundation's investment “critical to our ongoing work to solve the greatest public health challenges of our time.”

The chemistry department at UNC also revealed this week that Lisa Jones, an associate professor at the University of Maryland School of Pharmacy, withdrew her candidacy to come to Chapel Hill, citing the trustees' decision on Hannah-Jones.

“Hearing of the delay of Nikole Hannah-Jones’ tenure decision led me to reconsider whether the environment at the University of North Carolina would be conducive to the achievement of my academic aspirations, which include promoting diversity, equity, and inclusion,” Jones said in a statement Thursday. “While I have never met Ms. Hannah-Jones, as a faculty member of color, I stand in solidarity with her and could not in good conscience accept a position at UNC.”

Hannah-Jones responded to Jones' decision on Twitter, saying that “the solidarity shown me by Black women in particular during this crucible is something I will never forget.”

The school declined to comment on Jones' decision specifically, saying in a response that UNC is "committed to creating and sustaining an inclusive community of students, faculty and staff. We are dedicated to building a diverse learning environment with the highest caliber faculty and we remain committed to that mission.”

In an editorial Friday, the Sun pointed to the country's history of racism and how some people are made uncomfortable by it while others want to act as if it doesn't exist, a reference to The 1619 Project.

“There’s no guarantee that there will be a new vote on Ms. Hannah-Jones tenure, and it’s unclear when the board may take up the issue. ... But the public pressure has made it clear that history and truth still matter to many in this country,” the editorial said.

Tom Foreman Jr., The Associated Press

THE SONICS Legendary Tacoma Band 1964 1967 Full Album