Niagara-on-the-Lake locals speak out against racism incident

People in Niagara-on-the-Lake were speaking out today against an incident of overt racism in the town. At the same time, the town says it’s making progress toward restoring the mainly-black cemetery where the incident occurred.

People in Niagara-on-the-Lake were shocked today when they heard what happened at the historic burial ground yesterday.

The incident yesterday happened as James Russell was holding a rally at the burial ground.

He’s calling for the gravestones of the mostly-black people buried there in the 1800s to be lifted, cleaned, and replaced on the graves.

But as the rally was taking place, a woman in an expensive sports car stopped, and we could hear her hurling an insult.

Niagara-on-the-Lake Councillor Maria Mavridis says it shows some people still have a long way to go. She also says the town is making progress on the issue of the headstones.

Mavridis says the headstones were laid down around the 1970s to protect them, and the grass covered them.

Now the town is going through the process of determining the best way to respect the people buried here.

The town also says the name of the burying ground, which seems out of step with the times, is going to be changed.

The burial ground is now going to be called the Niagara Baptist Church Burial Ground. The signs have been made up and are waiting for approval. Then they can be installed likely sometime this summer.