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Saskatoon freezing deaths
Systemic racism
DCHP-3 (Nov 2022)
Spelling variants:Saskatoon 'freezing death'
n. — Systemic discrimination, First Nations, especially Saskatchewan
a series of First Nations deaths in Saskatoon likely caused by police misconduct.
Type: 1. Origin — Saskatoon freezing deaths refers to the deaths of several Indigenous men who were left isolated and exposed to the elements in winter outside of Saskatoon by city police (a practice referred to by police as a starlight tour) (see Hubbard 2004).
The term refers principally to the suspicious deaths of Rodney Naistus, Lawrence Wegner and Neil Stonechild (see Reber & Renaud 2005). Investigations into these cases followed the testimony of Darrel Night, who survived a starlight tour by calling a cab to his location (the two officers involved were later charged with unlawful confinement). While the cases sparked a series of inquiries and investigations, to date no officers involved have been held criminally responsible. The actions may be called racist and as scholars refer to "Saskatoon 'freezing deaths'", under quotes, it is suggested that these deaths had more to do with colonial violence than exposure to the elements (Cunneen 2023: 98).
The term is most common in Canada (see Chart 1).
The term refers principally to the suspicious deaths of Rodney Naistus, Lawrence Wegner and Neil Stonechild (see Reber & Renaud 2005). Investigations into these cases followed the testimony of Darrel Night, who survived a starlight tour by calling a cab to his location (the two officers involved were later charged with unlawful confinement). While the cases sparked a series of inquiries and investigations, to date no officers involved have been held criminally responsible. The actions may be called racist and as scholars refer to "Saskatoon 'freezing deaths'", under quotes, it is suggested that these deaths had more to do with colonial violence than exposure to the elements (Cunneen 2023: 98).
The term is most common in Canada (see Chart 1).
See: starlight tour
Quotations
2004
Stonechild was one of several Saskatoon freezing deaths that were examined by an RCMP task force in February 2000.
In his report, [David Wright] said he believed the testimony of Stonechild's friend, Jason Roy, who said he last saw Stonechild bleeding and handcuffed in the back of a Saskatoon police car, screaming for his life.
2014
Most Canadians are familiar with famous cases of hypothermia such as the victims of the Franklin Expedition, the Scott Expedition, the Titanic (whose passengers technically succumbed to “cold shock” not hypothermia), or perhaps even the Saskatoon freezing deaths, but probably none of us personally knows of anyone who has frozen to death. There are several reasons for this.
2020
A topic that people are talking about are the starlight tours in Saskatoon, where Saskatoon police would take Indigenous men that they had arrested, drive them to out of the city, in winter, at night. This is also referred to as Saskatoon freezing deaths as men have died from exposure.
2024
The protesters included Jake Maloney, an elder from Sipe’kneketik First Nation. Mr. Maloney was a chief investigator in the Saskatoon freezing deaths of Indigenous people who were picked up by police officers and dropped off on the outskirts of the city in the 1990s and early 2000s, in what became known as Starlight Tours.
References
- Hubbard (2004)
- Reber & Renaud (2005)
- Cunneen (2023)
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