Conservative Dallas Brodie, MLA for Vancouver-Quilchena, said Monday (Feb. 24) that she is standing by social media posts in support of a lawyer.

Brodie, who is her party's attorney general critic, has been questioning the "apparent mistreatment" of James Heller after he had asked for the rewording of Law Society training material about residential schools.

Brodie said in her post defending Heller that she was B次元官网网址渃ompelled to actB次元官网网址� as the attorney general critic to ensure lawyers are B次元官网网址渇ree to insist upon factsB次元官网网址� in the legal system.

B次元官网网址淭he number of confirmed child burials at the former Kamloops Indian Residential School site is zero,B次元官网网址� her post said. B次元官网网址淐an we trust our legal system if lawyers are no longer free to insist upon the facts?B次元官网网址�

The TkB次元官网网址檈ml煤ps te Secwepemc First Nation said in 2021 that ground penetrating radar provided B次元官网网址渃onfirmation of the remains of 215 childrenB次元官网网址� at the school site but last year said the radar found B次元官网网址渃onfirmation of 215 anomalies.B次元官网网址�

B.C. Indigenous Relations Minister Christine Boyle responded on social media by calling BrodieB次元官网网址檚 comments B次元官网网址渁bhorrent behaviourB次元官网网址� and says there is B次元官网网址渘o place in B.C. for residential school denialism.B次元官网网址�

Brodie said the point of her tweet was not to deny the suffering caused by residential schools.

"Our hearts ache for all of those children," she said. She added that she was not trying to hurt anybody. She added that the history of the residential school system is well-documented through the Truth and Reconcilation Commission. "But there are two words in that -- truth and reconciliation -- and it's very important that we stick to the truth. So if down the road, there are physical remains discovered (at the Kamloops site), then there might be another discussion. But at this point, there hasn't been any." 

Brodie also addressed Boyle's comments. "Once someone starts calling you names, that's a way of discussing the actual issue," Brodie said. 

Conservative Party Leader John Rustad said Monday morning that he talked to Brodie about her posts.

B次元官网网址淲hen the tweets were first put up, I was concerned that they may be misinterpreted as opposed to being about the fact that there hasnB次元官网网址檛 been any graves at that particular site or any bodies at that particular site exhumed or found versus the whole issue of the residential school, so I was concerned about that and asked her to take it down because of that concern,B次元官网网址� Rustad said. B次元官网网址淗owever, it doesnB次元官网网址檛 change the facts that there hasnB次元官网网址檛 been anything found at these sites, but it also doesnB次元官网网址檛 change the facts that of the tragedy that has been residential schools.B次元官网网址�

Brodie said she did not take the tweet down because taking it down would have made it look as if she would not stand behind what she wrote. She also rejected suggestions that her refusal to take the down tweet undermines Conservative Party of B.C. Leader John Rustad. "I think it is okay to stand on my own two feet and stand by what I wrote." 

Brodie added that she was not intending to hurt anybody. "(Except) for if it is not true, then people need to know that this is not true."  She added that Heller's reputation has been unfairly damaged over this issue. 

Brodie said it was legitimate for Rustad to ask her to take down the tweet. "We definitely have different points of views in our caucus and I actually think John is quite supportive of that. (Some) of those things are awkward, for sure, but I also have always been a person that has really believed in truth. (Particularly) as a defence lawyer, we have to be able to ask questions, we have to be able to get to evidence and we have to get to the truth of things, not my truth or your truth, the truth." 

BrodieB次元官网网址檚 posts shared a link to an article about Heller, who unsuccessfully pushed last year for the societyB次元官网网址檚 training material to say there were B次元官网网址減otentiallyB次元官网网址� burial sites at a former residential school in Kamloops, B.C., instead of using more definitive language.

Heller is now suing the society over what he calls B次元官网网址渇alse and defamatoryB次元官网网址� imputations of racism that he says the society republished.

Brodie said on social media that sheB次元官网网址檒l reach out to B.C. Attorney General Niki Sharma and the Law Society of British Columbia in the coming days about the situation facing lawyer James Heller.

The Law Society and the TkB次元官网网址檈mlups te Secwepemc First Nation have not responded to requests for comment, while Heller declined to speak on the record.

Brodie had previously drawn criticism for comments made when she was running as a candidate in Vancouver-Quilchena in last fallB次元官网网址檚 B.C. election.

She said that when B次元官网网址減eople say they want to be First Nations,B次元官网网址� that comes with the responsibility to take care of people in the Downtown Eastside.

Rustad also acknowledged the thousands of Indigenous children who were taken from their homes and the thousands who did not return home and died at the residential schools.

B次元官网网址淭ragically as part of this, they decided at the time not to send the deceased home for burial. They buried them on site, so just about every residential school across the country has a cemetery for children who passed B次元官网网址� ThatB次元官网网址檚 just the facts.B次元官网网址�

CanadaB次元官网网址檚 special interlocutor on unmarked graves and missing children said in a report last year that despite the B次元官网网址渨ell-documented realityB次元官网网址� of residential school deaths, some Canadians have made a concerted effort to attack the truths of survivors, Indigenous families and communities.

The report by Kimberly Murray says the TkB次元官网网址檈mlups te Secwepemc made an announcement B次元官网网址渃onfirming that up to 215 potential unmarked burialsB次元官网网址� took place at the Kamloops school site, resulting in global attention for the issue.

More than 150,000 Indigenous children were forced to attend residential schools, the last of which closed in 1996.

The Canadian Press

B次元官网网址� With files from Black Press Media