OTTAWA - An Arab community leader is incensed over an email from a Conservative campaign worker seeking people in "ethnic costume" to serve as props at an event with Stephen Harper.
The campaign team for Ted Opitz, the Tory candidate in the Toronto riding of Etobicoke Centre, put out a call Tuesday night to the Canadian Arab Federation.
"The opportunity is to have up to 20 people in national folklore costumes which represent their ethnic backgrounds," the email said.
"These people will sit in front row behind the PM -- great TV photo op."
It's not known if other cultural groups received the request. But the Arab federation's president, Khaled Mouammar, said he was so insulted he didn't respond to the email.
"I find it really regrettable that the Conservative party thinks that they can entertain themselves by parading, you know, people from ethnic communities in their traditional costumes to serve their interests only," Mouammar said.
Opitz released a statement distancing himself from the email and his spokesman said later the worker responsible, Zeljko (Zed) Zidaric, is no longer with the campaign.
"The email was sent by a campaign staffer without my knowledge," Opitz said. "I do not support its characterization or intent."
Conservative party spokesman Ryan Sparrow said Zidaric was a volunteer, not a paid staffer.
"He made a mistake and it is clearly inappropriate," Sparrow said.
Zidaric's email said Harper will be in the riding for a "big rally" on Thursday night and that they are looking for people from the Arab community to attend in ethnic garb.
"We, at the Etobicoke Centre riding, are trying to create a photo-op about all the multicultural groups that support Ted Opitz our local Conservative candidate and the Prime Minister," the email said.
"Do you have any cultural groups that would like to participate by having someone at the event in an ethnic costume?"
Mouammar said the kind of costume he believes the Tories were seeking is clothing that Arab people in Canada tend to wear on holidays, not on a day-to-day basis.
There was no response from Opitz's campaign as to whether any disciplinary action had been taken against Zidaric.
Last month a political staffer in Immigration Minister Jason Kenney's office was fired after sending out a letter from the minister's office seeking donations to pay for a partisan ad campaign targeting ethnic communities.
Kenney paid the House of Commons $10 to cover the cost of parliamentary letterhead used to make the fundraising pitch.
