Cornwall reaches out to rebuild relationship

On January 14, an Akwesasronon was shopping at the East Court Mall. When she finished her shopping, she returned to her vehicle to find a note on her windshield. The note read, "You are not from this province, you are not wanted here. Go home. Stay home."

In another part of Cornwall, another note was found on the windshield of an Akwesasne community member.

The notes were shared with Cornwall City Councillor Todd Bennet. Bennet shared the note on his Facebook account stating, "To the person that left this note on the windshield of one of our neighbors from Akwesasne's car in the No Frills parking lot at 3pm today, STOP", Bennett's message reads. "The residents of Akwesasne have three borders in their territory, and their license plate will reflect that. They are free to cross the borders to do their shopping. The person who was the recipient of this note is more than welcome here, and I hope that your ignorance doesn't persuade our neighbors to not continue shopping here. The same way our neighbors from the United Counties are welcome here, so are the residents of Akwesasne. If you are leaving these types of notes on people's cars, stop. You have no way of knowing where this person lives, or what they are doing here. Thanks."

The note went on to the City of Cornwall's mayor Bernadette Clement who shared this on her Facebook account on January 14, "Our community is very fortunate, and very diverse, and very rich and complicated. Our Mohawk neighbors in Akwesasne, their space is extremely complicated," she said. "There are jurisdictions there that include Ontario, Quebec, New York. People who reside in Akwesasne whether they have Ontario plates, New York plates, Quebec plates, they come in to Cornwall on a regular basis to get healthcare. They are important consumers in our economy. They are our business partners. They will come and buy groceries here."

On January 17, the City of Cornwall posted, "Grand Chief Abram Benedict of the Mohawk Council of Akwesasne has issued an open letter, which you can read in full here: https://bit.ly/2XIXSkr. In short, you are likely to see New York and Quebec license plates in Cornwall because Akwesasne territory covers three jurisdictions (Ontario, Quebec, and NY).

Please remember that it is Akwesasne residents' right to be in Cornwall as they complete essential errands and report to work. cc: Cornwall Police Service"

Cornwall's Mayor Bernadette Clement made this post, "I'm sure many of you have seen the social media posts circulating about mean notes left on cars with New York and Quebec licence plates. As the Mayor of Cornwall, I want to add my voice to that of my colleagues and friends, Grand Chief Benedict and Councillor Bennett. I addressed this matter during my Facebook live last night, but it certainly warrants a written message as well.

While we don't know the details of each incident, it has been confirmed that some of these vehicles belong to people who live in Akwesasne. History has made the jurisdiction of the Mohawks of Akwesasne quite complicated by borders put in place, as the map on this post shows. As a result, their vehicles could have Ontario, Quebec or New York license plates. The Akwesasronon are our economic partners, friends, neighbors and a very welcome part of this community. They come to Cornwall to work, get groceries, go to the pharmacy, seek medical care, do banking or for various other reasons, and currently for essential goods and services.

What we need now more than anything is respect, compassion and lots of kindness. This pandemic is a very tense time. It is difficult for everyone and there is no reason to be unkind to one another. As has been said many times, we really ARE in this together.

Sken:nen/Peace"

In an interview with Mayor Clement, she said she writes her own messages and handles her own social media presence. From the start, she wanted any response to any situation, events or incidents to be in her own words. Clement was made aware of the incident the day the note was circulating on social media. Some criticized her for waiting so long to respond to it. Many more agreed with her sentiments.

Mayor Clement, "Grand Chief Benedict and I talk frequently. I am open to anything that will strengthen our relationship with Akwesasne. We are friends and neighbors, and economic partners with Akwesasne and that must be understood. And we will move forward together with our friends, neighbors and economic partners. As a city, a mayor, this is not acceptable."