Don Atchison, mayor of Saskatoon, says city 'eons ahead of Winnipeg'

The good news, says Saskatoon Mayor Don Atchison, is that the city is not as racist as Winnipeg.

"I think we're eons ahead of where they are in Winnipeg," he said in an interview with Saskatoon Morning host, Leisha Grebinski.

"We're trying to address the situation and we admit that we're not perfect, and that we want to make a difference here."

Maclean'sclaimed that Manitoba and Saskatchewan have the highest levels of racism in the country. It labelled Winnipeg the country's most racist city.

• Reaction to Mayor Don Atchison's comments on state of racism in Saskatoon

Atchison pointed to the strong local economy and evolving institutional attitudes as two reasons why the city is having success.

He said the cityhas strong ties with the Saskatoon Tribal Council and local First Nations. He also said that Saskatoonhas worked hard to fairly advance treaty land entitlement claims, and actively participated in the Truth and Reconciliation hearings.

"The more successful we become in ourcommunity, the more accepting we will be of everyone," he said.

Profiling still a reality

But not everyone is so positive.

'You can tell that they don't see who I am.-- Cece

Cece Baptiste is a local Cree woman who described her experiences of racism.

It happens when she goes into some stores, she said.

"You can tell that they don't see who I am, and they see this brown person who is walking in and right away they assume I'm poor or in a bad way," she said.

"It's hard to talk about."

Atchisondoes not argue with Baptiste's personal experience.

"It's unfortunate that some people wish to judge a book by its cover," he said.

"It's continually working on the different mindsets, and educating people more and more."

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