The “Let’s Guard Anti-Racist Canada and the Safety of its Citizens” Haibun
On the Occasion of the Upcoming White Supremacist March
on 21 March 2009, United Nations Anti-Racism Day
Would someone mind explaining this to a questioning mind: why are anti-racist activists targeted by government agencies when they protest the overt presence of racist fanatics? Namely, the presence of the Aryan Guard. Would someone mind also explaining this: why do police guard the Aryan Guard while they drum out a message of violence and poison the air around them? The air around all. The air which does not distinguish human lungs but nourishes us all.
Too few call out the haters for the damage that they do: no, ‘free speech’ is too sacred. But it’s everyone’s responsibility to call hate what it is, especially the police. We refuse to fade into the background as indiscriminate wallflowers, allowers of the slash where Calgary’s mouth should be. And so we speak now, with free speech and not hate speech, between which there is a chasm. We condemn the members of the Aryan Guard, not for their skin colour but the violence of their acts. Their march terrorizes witnesses, both near and far. All the way in Edmonton people feel shock and pain as they listen to the thumps of hate. These are not the sounds of intelligent dialogue. These are the sounds of assault, of fear. Guard members wear bandanas across their shamed faces, meaning a Sudanese-Canadian must sweat when a white face passes; could that be one of them? Meaning an Aboriginal Canadian cannot feel safe in the city she calls home; why do they hate me for the colour of my skin? We’re disgusted by the terrible things the Aryan Guard breeds. So would someone mind explaining once and for all: why are racists protected by ‘free speech,’ not arrested and charged with what is clearly hate speech?
“White pride” is a hoax
And racism hurts.
Protect us all on March 21st.
Send your copy to:
Mayor Dave Bronconnier
Office of the Mayor
The City of Calgary
PO Box 2100, Station M
Calgary, AB T2P 2M5
Chief Rick Hanson
Calgary Police Service
133 Sixth Avenue SE
Calgary, AB T2G 4Z1
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Well said. Thank you for your efforts.
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