Kelowna RCMP investigating alleged racist rant by protester at vaccine clinic
Police in Kelowna are investigating after a protester outside a COVID-19 vaccination clinic was recorded verbally abusing a security guard.
Video of the incident recorded by Carli Berry for Infonews.ca shows a man holding a sign and speaking angrily to the guard, who is wearing a turban.
"Shut up," the man says in the video. "Go back to your country. You're not a Canadian."
He later tells the security guard to "go back to India."
"Beat it," he says. "You're disgusting."
Berry identifies the man insulting the security guard as Bruce Orydzuk, a Kelowna resident who was allegedly participating in an anti-vaccination protest outside of the vaccine clinic. Berry says Orydzuk began raising his voice while talking to her and that’s when his attention turned to the security guard.
“The security guard stood up for me, because Bruce was starting to get aggressive towards me in some of his questions.”
In a news release, Kelowna RCMP say they were called to the vaccine clinic on July 13, the date the video was recorded, for a complaint that protesters were "impeding access to the clinic."
"Officers attended, spoke with staff and dealt with the protesters," says Kelowna RCMP spokesperson Cpl. Jocelyn Noseworthy, in the release.
"No arrests were made at that time."
The video quickly circulated online on Thursday, catching the attention of Premier John Horgan.
“This is vile, racist behaviour. If this is how you treat people, you are the problem,” the premier tweeted.
The encounter lasts approximately 90 seconds before the man walks off. Mohini Singh, a Kelowna city councillor, says the man’s racist remarks are not reflective of the city.
“How far is this person, or this group of people, doing to go before we say stop?”
Singh says she’s heard from Kelowna residents who commend the security guard for de-escalating the situation.
“The Indo-Canadian community here is very, very proud of him. Proud of the way he stood his ground, and proud of the way he didn’t lose his cool," Singh says.
Since becoming aware of the video, police have launched an investigation. They say the video shows "a protester yelling what appear to be racially motivated comments and accusations at a staff member who asked him to leave the property."
“We are now investigating this incident through the lens of the willful promotion of hatred under Section 319 of the Criminal Code,” Noseworthy says. “Racism has no place in our community, and I want to reassure the public that this matter is being given the full attention of our General Investigative Support Team in consultation with the Provincial Hate Crimes Unit.”
RCMP say they have identified the man in the video, but they're asking anyone who witnessed the incident and has not already spoken to them to get in touch by calling (250) 762-3300.
Berry hopes her video continues to be shared and viewed across the country.
“I feel like as Canadians we sometimes like to pretend racism doesn’t exist. We shouldn’t be sweeping these things under the rug.”
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
BREAKING Federal employees will be required to spend 3 days a week in the office
Starting in September, public servants in the core public administration will be required to work in the office a minimum of three days a week. The Treasury Board Secretariat says executives will need to be in the office four days per week.
Concerns about plexiglass prompt inspections at some Loblaws locations in Ottawa
Inspections are underway at more than one Loblaws location in Ottawa after complaints were filed about tall plexiglass barriers.
Canada's most wanted fugitive arrested in P.E.I. in connection with Toronto homicide
A suspect in a fatal shooting in Toronto’s east end last summer has been arrested in Charlottetown, just one week after he topped a list of Canada’s most wanted fugitives.
OPP officer said 'someone's going to get hurt' before wrong-way Hwy. 401 crash
As multiple Durham police cruisers were chasing a robbery suspect on the wrong side of Highway 401 Monday night, an Ontario Provincial Police officer shared his concerns, telling a dispatcher, "Someone's going to get hurt."
Poilievre returns to House unrepentant for calling Trudeau 'wacko,' Speaker not resigning
An unrepentant Pierre Poilievre returned to the House of Commons on Wednesday to pepper the prime minister about his drug decriminalization policies after being booted the day prior for refusing to take back calling Justin Trudeau 'wacko' over his approach to the issue.
Five human skeletons, missing hands and feet, found outside house of Nazi leader Hermann Göring
Archeologists have unearthed the skeletons of five people, missing their hands and feet, at a former Nazi military base in Poland.
Toddler of Phoenix first responder dies after bounce house goes airborne
A two-year-old child died after a strong gust of wind sent the bounce house he was in airborne and into a neighbouring lot in central Arizona, the Pinal County Sheriff's Office said.
Plane overshoots runway at airport in St. John's, N.L., no injuries reported
Investigators from the Transportation Safety Board of Canada are headed to St. John's, N.L., after a plane overshot a runway at the city's airport this afternoon.
A teen was found buried in a basement in New York. An engraved ring helped police learn her identity two decades later
For more than two decades, the unknown victim was nicknamed "Midtown Jane Doe" because she was found in the Hell's Kitchen neighbourhood of New York City. But this week, investigators finally revealed her identity.