Poster in East York being investigated as hate crime

CTV Toronto: Poster being investigated A poster with white supremacist ideology is now being investigated as a hate crime. Janice Golding reports.

A poster promoting white supremacist ideology is now being investigated by police as a hate crime after it was spotted in East York Monday morning.

The sign was seen at a park near Parkside Elementary School, located near O’Connor Drive and Woodbine Avenue.

Some members of the public sent a picture of the poster to police prompting the Hate Crime Unit to investigate, Toronto police spokesperson Meaghan Gray said.

The poster invited people to join the Alt-Right movement -- which is linked to anti-semiticism, white supremacy and right-wing populism -- and listed websites associated with it.

“Hey white person, tired of political correctness?” the poster read. “Wondering why only while countries have to become “multicultural”? Figure out that diversity only means “less white people”?”

Gray said this was the first time police were alerted to postings by the group.

Twitter and Facebook erupted with posts and comments about the poster. Some condemned it while others supported people’s right to free speech.

The councillor in the area spoke out about the incident on social media, calling the message in the poster “unacceptable.”

“This hate is unacceptable in our city. Staff are removing the posters immediately and investigating who is responsible,” Beaches-East York Counc. Janet Davis tweeted later Monday afternoon.

The posters were illegally pasted onto hydro poles and other public infrastructure, Davis later said to CP24.

“I found this messaging unacceptable in a city like Toronto and its very worrisome that the U.S. election and the election of Donald Trump could legitimize this kind of hate speech here in Toronto,” she said.

Residents who see the poster anywhere else can call police, who will then investigate further, Gray said.