Calgary police encouraged by witnesses coming forward in recent hate crime investigations
Calgary police are searching for a man they believe was involved in a hate-motivated crime Tuesday, one of many being investigated in Alberta in recent weeks.
Just before noon Tuesday, police say a good Samaritan witnessed a man verbally berating a Muslim woman who was wearing a burka and her children at the intersection of 6 Avenue and 8 St S.W.
Police are hoping to speak to the victim who hasn’t filed a report and now searching for a white man, around 50 years old, who was wearing a turquoise-colour shirt and white hat.
Constable Craig Collins, the hate crimes coordinator of the Calgary Police Service says they recognize the lasting emotional impacts these types of events have and are committed to investigating all allegations of hate-motivated incidents.
“There isn’t an increase in hate crimes in Calgary but there is a greater increase in public awareness,” he said. “People are feeling more confident to come forward.”
This is the second high profile incident of this kind in Calgary in the last month where a witness has come forward, something Collins is encouraged by.
“I want to applaud those citizens that do come forward. As a police service we can’t keep every Calgarians safe without the help from our community.”
Police also laid charges against a man last month in what police are calling a hate crime, after a truck driver was recorded yelling profanities, threats and derogatory comments and tore a windshield wiper off a victim’s vehicle.
There have also been a number of incidents in Edmonton, including the discovery of a swastika on a mosque, as well as an attack on a Muslim woman mid-June.
A swastika was found painted on a mosque, it's not clear how long it's been there. Tuesday June 15, 2021 (CTV News Edmonton)
'NOT SURPRISED'
Dr. Pallavi Banerjee is an associate professor in the department of Sociology at the University of Calgary and said Albertans can no longer be surprised by these incidents.
“I’m frustrated and infuriated but I’m not surprised as Canada has a history of hate crimes against Muslims,” she said. “I think we need to stop projecting this innocence and say that we are not a very welcoming nation to minorities, to Indigenous people, and we start there and we correct ourselves instead of expressing shock at these events.”
Banerjee said there is a number of reasons we may be seeing these type of crimes recently, including the pandemic.
“We are at a moment of historic global crisis with the pandemic and historically whenever there is a external factor like the pandemic - which is not external, it’s happening globally - but it is a crisis and it’s effecting people, when it affects people in a way ideologies around white nationalist and white supremacy and racist and racist ideologies show up right?”
Anyone with information on any of these incidents is asked to contact police at 403-266-1234. Anonymous tipsters can contact Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477, online or by using the P3 Tips app available at Apple or the Google Play Store
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
'A beautiful soul': Funeral held for baby boy killed in wrong-way crash on Highway 401
A funeral was held on Wednesday for a three-month-old boy who died after being involved in a wrong-way crash on Highway 401 in Whitby last week.
Police handcuff man trying to enter Drake's Toronto mansion
Toronto police say a man was taken into custody outside Drake's Bridle Path mansion Wednesday afternoon after he tried to gain access to the residence.
Biden says he will stop sending bombs and artillery shells to Israel if they launch major invasion of Rafah
U.S. President Joe Biden said for the first time Wednesday he would halt shipments of American weapons to Israel, which he acknowledged have been used to kill civilians in Gaza, if Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu orders a major invasion of the city of Rafah.
U.S. presidential candidate RFK Jr. had a brain worm, has recovered, campaign says
Independent U.S. presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. had a parasite in his brain more than a decade ago, but has fully recovered, his campaign said, after the New York Times reported about the ailment.
What is whooping cough and should Canadians be concerned as Europe declares outbreak?
There is currently a whooping cough epidemic in Europe, with 10 times as many cases compared to the previous two years. While an outbreak has not been declared nationwide in Canada, whooping cough is regularly detected in the country.
Pfizer agrees to settle more than 10K lawsuits over Zantac cancer risk: Bloomberg News
Pfizer has agreed to settle more than 10,000 lawsuits about cancer risks related to the now discontinued heartburn drug Zantac, Bloomberg News reported on Wednesday, citing people familiar with the deal.
Quebec premier defends new museum on Quebecois nation after Indigenous criticism
Quebec Premier Francois Legault is defending his comments about a new history museum after he was accused by a prominent First Nations group of trying to erase their history.
B.C. theatre to pay $55K to neurodivergent actor in discrimination case
British Columbia's human rights tribunal has awarded a neurodigergent actor, who was diagnosed with sensory and learning disorders, more than $55,000 after finding that a Kelowna theatre company discriminated against him because of his disabilities.
Who's responsible for regulating cannabis stores operating under the sovereignty banner?
It's not quite clear who is supposed to be regulating so-called sovereign cannabis stores or even ensure they're benefiting Indigenous communities.