Mohawk woman, non-native boyfriend driven from Kahnawake home by protesters

Tensions remainedhigh Monday on a Quebec reserve after a mixed-racecouple and an 11-year-old boy were driven out of their home by protesters a day earlier.

There are conflicting views as towhy some residents of theKahnawake reserve near Montreal wanted Amanda Deer and her non-native boyfriend to leave.

• BACKGROUND| Kahnawake eviction policy
• Kahnawake mixed couple subject of 'marry out, stay out' protest
• Mohawk Cheryl Diabo faces eviction threat from Kahnawake
• Former Olympian Waneek Horn-Miller among Mohawks suing Kahnawake council

A group of people gathered outside Deer'shome Sundayand demanded the family leave.

She said she's not sure whether it'sbecause her boyfriend has a criminal record, or because theywere trying to enforce a territory law thatsaysany Mohawk who marries or lives with a non-native must move away.

"Two people in the pro-eviction [group], they were trying to break my front door down. They started handling the handle, banging on the door, banging on the porch," Deer said.

"People were on the side of my porch in the back where the pool is. I had the back door gate locked by the pool, they're trying to kick it in. 'Get the f--k out of here, get the hell out of here. We want him out!' And the police are standing there doing nothing."

Deer said she and her family decided to temporarily leave their home, fearing for their safety.

Protesters also told CBC News and Radio-Canada reporters to leaveKahnawake on Sunday.

Boyfriend accused of violence

Many of the protesters at her househave attended prior protests over membership issues inKahnawake.But Deer's neighbour, Michael Jacobs, saidthat wasn't the issue.

He said protesters were upsetbecause the boyfriend has spent time behind bars and was released back into the community on Friday.

"The guy's a violent felon and we took it very seriously," Jacobs said. "I haven't slept for four days."

Grand Chief Mike Delislesaid he doesn't believe the protesters were targeting Deer because of her non-native boyfriend,but rather because of her boyfriend's reputation and because acourt ordered the boyfriend to remain in Kahnawake as a condition of his release from jail.

"Case workers, court workers, or what have you, should realize and understand that putting a condition on a non-native individual to reside in the territory isn't going to work," Delisle said.

Still,Delisle said the tactics used by protesters in this case may have gone too far.

"We're not looking for vigilantism," he said.

Eviction policy

The controversy surroundingKahnawake's"marry out, stay out" policyhas spurred much consternation among Mohawks living on the land just south of Montreal.

The policy has been in place since 1981, but has not been widely enforced.

The rule means Mohawks who marry non-natives have to leave the community of about8,000 residents. Over the years, some have leftby their own accord, but others have chosen to stay despiteKahnawake'smembership law.

In 2010, the Mohawk Council ofKahnawakevoted to evict 26 non-natives.

The controversy then began anew last year, when some people living in Kahnawake said they were being intimidated by pro-eviction protesters.

Many families since then have been targeted by people insisting they vacate the premises, includingMarvin and Terry McComber, Cheryl DiaboandWaneek Horn-Miller.

Some of them are in the process of suing the Mohawk Council of Kahnawake over the eviction policy.

Feds condemn law as 'racist'

The office of Bernard Valcourt, minister of aboriginal affairs, had strong words for theKahnawake policy, calling it"racist and unacceptable."

"We urge community leaders to enact a more inclusive membership and residency approach, one that is in line with the spirit of Canadians' values of equality and freedom," the statement said.

Geoffrey Kelley, the Quebec minister responsible for native affairs, said last weekhe is concerned for the safety of the mixed Mohawk and non-native families.