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“He was smart,” Downey said, pointing out that Tequel wrote his own verses and sent plenty of text messages. Clearly, Tequel could read and write just fine.
For Downey, the issues behind Tequel’s death run deeper, not only in Metro Vancouver but Canada-wide.
The Willis family comes from Halifax’s North Preston community, one of the oldest and largest Black communities in Canada. They trace their lineage to former American slaves who were promised land in Nova Scotia to fight alongside the British in the War of 1812.
After the war, roughly 2,000 Black refugees arrived in the region only to learn they could live on the land, but not own it. They were second-class citizens, offered few opportunities and no way to build generational wealth.
“We were given occupation. The Europeans were given clear titles,” Downey said. “That makes a difference.”
To this day, North Preston has few amenities, sidewalks or public services — apart from an active RCMP presence, of course — and the systemic discrimination persists, firmly entrenched, despite a recent apology from Nova Scotia Premier Stephen McNeil.
“A watered-down apology” isn’t enough, said Downey, a social justice advocate who chairs the North Preston Action Committee and is outspoken about the need to defund the police and invest in the community through reparations instead. Nothing else will break the cycle of poverty, unravel the long-standing distrust in government and police-led programs and interventions, or undo the legacy of disenfranchisement seen by Tequel’s family as central to his death.
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