The photo of a banner hung from a barbed wire fence along highway 779 northwest of Edmonton went viral after it was posted online over the Heritage Day long weekend. “The Indians have done nothing in 100 years and now they wanna tell us how to run Alberta,” the banner said. It alarmed Kara Burnstick from Alexander First Nation enough that she stopped to take a picture of it. She told APTN News that it feels like attitudes toward First Nations people are getting worse. “A hundred percent. I think that you can definitely sense it, and you can definitely feel it. Just when I’m out, doing grocery shopping or getting gas or something. It’s very unsettling,” said Burnstick said on her social media post. While Burnstick doesn’t know when the banner was placed on the fence, the date of her photo coincided with an “Alberta Independence Walk” and rally by the group Cruise to Alberta Independence in Spruce Grove, south of where the banner was reportedly located. The group has promoted a series of rallies in support of the province separating across Alberta in recent months, ahead of the Oct. 19 referendum. APTN reached out to the group for comment. In an email, “Al Bertan” with the group said they were unaware of the banner. “This is not our approach, so it is definitely not something we would do. But if by chance someone within our community is responsible for [it] I will find out,” they said. The City of Spruce Grove and Sturgeon County were both unaware of the banner. Burnstick, a member of Alexander First Nation said the banner made her do a double take. “I feel very unsafe, and I do feel threatened because this is a neighboring community that’s just outside of our reserve,” Burnstick said. “And, you know, it makes me worrisome for our families and our children and it’s just it’s scary because if they can put the sign up, what else are they capable of?” She said the photo has been shared by thousands of people since she posted it on Saturday. Chris Saulteaux from Paul First Nation said he was so disgusted, he drove to the site and tore the banner down. “When I first saw it, I thought it was probably AI, and then I [saw] it going around more and more on Facebook. And so I don’t know. I just I decided that I was going to go see from my very own eyes that this actually was up and it existed,” Chris Saulteaux said, noting he’s not worried about potential fallout from his actions. Comments on the original photo condemn the use of the banner. “Danielle Smith states that the law will be enforced if First Nations engage in civil disobedience. Yet, the public display of these signs causes severe social, cultural, and safety issues. This is systemic racism and anti-Indigenous racism. It is a public display of hatred and violence driven by entitled separatists,” said Erica Johnson on Facebook. StopHateAB said it’s not only First Nations being impacted by acts such as this. “Sadly, as the referendum in Alberta is approaching anti-Indigenous and hate towards racialized/newcomer communities has been rising in a more public and harmful way, which has been reflected on our online community reporting tool. The political climate has become increasingly volatile and Indigenous communities have been targeted among racialized/newcomer groups in an open and public fashion,” said executive director Nina Saini. “Hateful rhetoric is being encouraged through these despicable public displays and the consequence of political disagreement through this referendum has trickled in to the promotion and emboldened actions promoting racism and discrimination across Alberta. There is no justification for this and the harm being directed towards Indigenous communities, as they stand in unity to remain a united Canada, this type of targeted hate is not acceptable and deeply concerning,” Saini said, adding that StopHateAB “stands in solidarity with the Indigenous peoples and their treaty rights being honored.” The Spruce Grove gathering was part of localized summer rallies—including recent demonstrations in Taber and bridge rallies over Edmonton’s Whitemud Drive. These demonstrations follow a successful citizen initiative petition organized by groups like Stay Free Alberta, which triggered the official fall referendum. The question dealing with separation asks “Should Alberta remain a province of Canada, or should the Government of Alberta commence the legal process required under the Canadian Constitution to hold a binding provincial referendum on whether or …