To: All Canadian Members of Parliament and fellow Canadians
Dare to DYLAN Dream: Never again
By Judi McLeod
Saturday, February 10, 2007
"My name is Grant McGillis and I am writing this letter on behalf of my late son, Dylan Cole McGillis, all of his extended families, friends and concerned Canadian citizens. Dylan was a Lloydminster, SK resident who was murdered in an unprovoked and brutal attack on Whyte Ave, Edmonton, AB on November 19, 2006.
Dylan was just 20 years old and was in Edmonton for the weekend visiting his girlfriend, also from Lloydminster, who was attending to her post-secondary education. Saturday, November 18, 2006, he and three friends who were also former Lloydminster residents went out to a night club on the "trendy" or notorious (depending on your point of view) Whyte Avenue for an evening of fun. As they were on their way back to their vehicle, Dylan and his friend were jumped by a group of 5 or 6 thugs which quickly grew to approximately 15 people. Dylan was knocked to the ground, was able to get up and tried to get away from his attackers, but to no avail as they were pursued down the street. Again, he was swarmed and knocked to the ground, got back up and then someone in the pursuing pack lunged forward and stabbed him. A young female friend of Dylan's thought that this group might stop their vicious attack if she shielded Dylan from their blows. She was sadly mistaken as she sustained knife wounds to her arm as a result of her courageous act. Just seconds later, only meters from where Dylan was stabbed, another young man was pulled from his truck and stabbed multiple times by what is believed to be the same coward who murdered Dylan. To date there have been no arrests in either attack. There were seven stabbings in Edmonton that weekend, two of which were fatal.
(www.dylanmcgillis.ca) 
With many family and friends at his bedside, Dylan fought for his life for 15 long hours, enduring 3 emergency surgeries until he could fight no more. This was the worst time in any of our lives, to watch our son, brother, nephew, and friend die right in front of us. The day he died we found out that he and his girlfriend are going to have a baby on July 6, 2007, three days after what should have been Dylan's 21st birthday.
Dylan was a kind, compassionate and caring person who was in the wrong place at the wrong time, but if it wasn't him, it could have just as easily been someone else's son, brother, uncle or loved one. The last two months have been the worst I have known. First to see my son in the U of A Hospital, his bed and room covered in blood, his body swollen close to twice its normal size from the beating and all the fluids he received, all the tubes and wires attached everywhere to him and finally, to watch my son breathe his last breath is more than any parent should have to endure.
In interviews that I have done and letters that I have written, I have tried to impress upon Canadians, the pain, devastation, feelings of hopelessness and heartache that we feel every single day, but can't seem to find words strong enough. You can imagine having your child die, but you can never know the REAL and ongoing pain until you actually feel it first hand. After thinking of how to express these feelings to Canadians, the thought of the 9/11 attacks in the USA come to mind. All of those needless and senseless deaths at the hands of terrorists, and for what? Yes, 9/11 was very traumatic for many people, including me, however, it is only a small fraction of what I live with everyday now.
Our families have always been close and have all grieved and suffered through this tremendous loss together and we have made a commitment to try to prevent other families from going through what Dylan and all of us have. Many people have been affected by Dylan's death because he was so well liked by everyone who knew him. Close to 1,200 people attended his funeral which is a huge impact for someone that young to make. As responsible, law abiding Canadians, we must band together to stop this violence. We have started a campaign, Don't Y ou Let Another Neighbor die (acronym for Dylan), to try to prevent theses tragedies from continuing at such an alarming rate; not only in Edmonton, but right across this great country of ours.
Violent crimes monopolize the media headlines every day. Edmonton has been the murder capital of Canada for three years running, but if you erased the murders committed by young people, they would no longer have this dubious distinction. Young offenders and young adults are taking lives at an ever increasing rate. It seems like many of our children are growing up these days with no respect for human life. Over the last two months, I have read countless emails and articles and have talked with many people expressing the overwhelming opinion that penalties need to be more severe for violent criminals in Canada. I feel the greatest deterrent for any action is consequence and it is time that we put some teeth back in the sentencing process for violent offenders.
We have drafted and are circulating a petition to lobby the Government of Canada to introduce legislation whereby there would be mandatory minimum sentences for violent offenders (as defined by the Government of Canada) regardless of age. I don't think the Youth Criminal Justice Act should be abolished but revamped, as it is teaching young people that they can get away with violent crimes and receive a slap on the wrist for their actions. I can only guess where our society and country will be a generation from now if this mentality doesn't change. It is so sad to hear from so many of our young people who fear for their safety when going out for the night, or even just walking down our streets.
As an elected official, I implore you to take this petition to your constituents so that you can represent those decent, responsible Canadian citizens who are asking the Government to make our streets, neighborhoods and country as a whole a safer place to raise our children. I believe that this is not a partisan issue, but a safety concern that you have a responsibility to address on behalf of your constituents. I would ask that you circulate Dylan's website, www.dylanmcgillis.ca and the petition which is located on the home page throughout your riding with hopes that we as responsible Canadians can STOP THE VIOLENCE!"
Thank You!
Sincerely,Dylan's Dad, Grant McGillis
Box 276, Neilburg, Sk, S0M 2C0
Canada Free Press founding editor Most recent by Judi McLeod is an award-winning journalist with 30 years experience in the print media. Her work has appeared on Newsmax.com, Drudge Report, Foxnews.com, Glenn Beck. Judi can be reached at: judi@canadafreepress.com
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