06-03-2024, 10:53 AM
|
#1018
|
Participant 
|
If appeasing and fulfilling the wishes of some of the victims families is a benefit, unfortunately neither decision does that:
Quote:
Reminders of his son are everywhere. His jersey number, 9, has been retired and has a place of honour in the Rodd Hamm Arena. Thomas's team, the Saskatoon U18 AAA Blazers, have stickers with Evan's initials on their helmets. "I think we're a long way from healing," Thomas said, rubbing his arm, his eyes welling with tears. But as part of their healing journey, Thomas and his wife, Laurie, met with Sidhu during the court hearing in 2019 to tell him they forgive him.
"I think empathy and compassion go a long way," Thomas said. And while that's not always easy, he believes it's what Evan would want them to do. It's why the family has also written a letter to the CBSA, supporting Sidhu's bid to stay in Canada.
"There were a lot of extenuating circumstances in this case. And yeah, Mr. Sidhu was ultimately responsible for how he operated in that vehicle, but there were so many other factors that went into that. His clearly inadequate training that allowed him to get behind the wheel of that vehicle, his lack of experience, he'd never been in that part of the world before — he basically was thrown to the wolves that day," Thomas said.
"While the result of his actions were violent and criminal, this wasn't by nature a violent crime. He didn't set out with the intent to cause harm. It was just a horrible, tragic accident. And it's our opinion that deportation doesn't need to be the necessary end to this."
|
https://newsinteractives.cbc.ca/long...t-singh-sidhu/
Every family has a right to feel how they’re feeling. But it’s worth acknowledging that either decision is going against someone’s wishes. And as demonstrated above, deportation does not need to be the barrier or enabler for healing.
|
|
|