Calls for action on drunk driving

A local family organized a demonstration outside of the Mohawk Council of Kanesatake (MCK) this week, after being involved in a car accident with a non-local driver who had more than twice the legal blood alcohol limit.

“I was scared, mad, and just upset that somebody would be that drunk on this road,” said Sage Harrington, 15, who was in the car with her father on Monday around 6:30 p.m. when the accident happened.

Her father, Al Harrington, had come to a stop at a stop sign at the intersection of Ahsennénhson and Ste. Philomene when they were rear-ended by another vehicle. The two went to the hospital, and Sage was kept overnight for observation.

The driver of the other vehicle was a 33-year-old man from Chateauguay, who was arrested by Surete du Quebec (SQ) officers. They breathalyzed him at the station and released information on Tuesday stating his blood alcohol level.

SQ spokesperson Marc Tessier confirmed to The Eastern Door that the driver will be due back in court at the St. Jerome courthouse at a later date.

“I came to a complete stop and the next thing I knew it was just ‘bang,’” said Al.

Sage’s mother, Karonhienhawe Nicholas, immediately rushed to the scene of the accident.

“It’s completely ridiculous and I’m absolutely fed up. It could’ve been my daughter’s life that night. It could have been her father’s. I could have lost two people,” she said.

Emergency services, including Kanesatake Perimeter Security (KPS), were on scene after the accident. KPS coordinator Kane Montour said there were alcohol containers in the vehicle, and the man was unable to form coherent sentences.

It’s too common an occurrence in Kanesatake, said Kane.

“I used to bike everywhere with my friends growing up, and even then, we had a speeding problem, but now it seems to have gotten a lot worse,” Montour said.

Montour was at a demonstration on Wednesday organized by Al, Sage, and Nicholas, where around 30 local youth and community members gathered at the MCK offices.

Youth held signs that read slogans such as “Make our community safe again,” and “If every child matters, what about me?”

Al brought the car that he and Sage had been in to the office, which was spray painted with red paint reading “Enough is enough.”

“I heard a lot of kids who were crying for help,” Montour said. “They talked about their concerns and their fears, and they’re tired of not being able to go anywhere. They can’t walk on the roads, they can’t bike on the roads, they can’t do anything because they’re in fear of drunk drivers or people speeding, whether it’s locals or non-locals.”

According to Nicholas, MCK grand chief Victor Bonspille and MCK chief Denise David listened to the youth as they shared their thoughts.

“They weren’t hostile, and that was appreciated. If we spoke adult-to-adult, nobody would listen, people would be fighting. But when the kids speak, they need to listen, and it made more of an impact when the kids speak than when we do now,” she said.

At the demonstration, MCK chief Serge Otsi Simon got into a verbal dispute with Nicholas and Al Harrington. Nicholas said that when she arrived, she told Simon to come outside and see why they were there.

Nicholas said that she felt Simon was aggressive in response, and that he did not initially realize what the demonstration was about.

Simon had then spoken with Al, who had been livestreaming some of the event. As the two began to argue, Simon told The Eastern Door that he had started unbuttoning his jacket and stated, “somebody get this guy out of my face.”

“At the time, I didn’t know this accident was involving his daughter,” Simon said. “When Harrington was going around, he was filming the whole thing, and I found it disrespectful to be doing that … I lost my temper.”

Simon said he didn’t know Al and Sage were the ones involved in the accident, and didn’t know the demonstration was about intoxicated driving.

“I felt like I was being ambushed … the impression I got when I first saw the kids by the highway was that the grown-ups were using the high schoolers for some political agenda, and it got me angry,” he said.

“It was wrong, and I was wrong on so many levels, and I’m sorry.”

Nicholas said that the group wants the MCK to do more.

“The only reason why we went there is because they have the authority to deal with the government, to say that this is an issue and it shouldn’t be,” she said.

Nicholas said there should be more SQ patrols.

“We’re not against it. We’re putting that past behind us and leaving it in the past because we need more authority here because other people, including some community members, are putting our lives at risk every day,” she said.

“There’s corruption in any police force. What we need is people to come here and do their jobs, to keep the world safe and answer when we call for help. I don’t care who they are, as long as they’re here to protect the kids.”

Montour said something needs to change in terms of police presence in the community.

“I used to be kind of anti about police, saying we don’t need them here, but things have gotten worse, and at the end of the day, we need to do what’s best for community protection,” he said. “I don’t have the answer. It’s a tough situation, and the kids shouldn’t have to suffer for that.”

Simon said that he is in favour of having a police force that is specifically focused on serving the community.

“I guarantee that if we partner with outside security forces, and with other First Nations entities like the AFNQL (Assembly of First Nations Quebec-Labrador) then it would be a game changer,” he said.

For Sage, who just last weekend had the opportunity to show her art at an exhibition in Montreal, this week has been stressful. She said that daily life in Kanesatake often leaves her questioning her future here.

“I want to stay, but at the same time if it stays the way it does, I don’t know,” she said. “My friends all think the same thing, if you’re going on the roads, it’s simply taking a risk on your own life.”

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