Anti-immigration flyers upset Brampton residents
Pamphlet distributed by B.C.-based group contrasts predominantly white past with Sikh immigrants of today
Peel Regional Police are investigating allegations of racism related to an anti-immigration pamphlet being circulated in Brampton, Ont.
Some local residents are upset by the flyer, which questions the racial demographics of the city's population. It shows two photos — the first a group of white people, the second a group of Sikhs.
Below the second photo, the pamphlet asks: “Is this what you really want?”
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The flyers were issued by a group called Immigration Watch Canada which, according to a spokesperson in B.C., is opposed to mass immigration.
The spokesperson said the group plans to distribute flyers in more communities.
“The implication is clear — there are groups of people who we do not want to represent our town, who we do not want to make up the population of our town,” said resident Cecilia Kennedy.
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She says she found the flyer in her mailbox and then contacted local politicians, including the mayor, and police.
Balpreet Singh of the World Sikh Organization of Canada said the flyer has been “quite upsetting” to some members of his community, but he doubts it qualifies as a hate crime.
“I think the pamphlets are in very bad taste, but I don't think that they go into the territory of hate crime, so I don't expect anything to be done,” he said.
From a report by Lorenda Reddekopp