#HHNHH
Hate Has No Home Here
Friends of Kensington Market stands in grief and solidarity with Asian communities following the recent racist attacks in Atlanta and every day.
The terrorist attack in Atlanta took the lives of eight innocent people: Delaina Ashley Yaun, Paul Andre Michels, Xiaojie Tan, Daoyou Feng, Hyun Jung Grant, Soon C Park, Suncha Kim, and Yong S Yue.
Canada is not immune to anti-Asian hate crimes, with a higher number of anti-Asian racism reports per capita than the U.S. Nearly 30% of incidents are assault with women disproportionately impacted and accounting for 60%.* Figures compiled by the CCNC show more than 600 reported incidents across 7 provinces, 30% were assaults including spitting and physical violence.**
Racist hate is hard enough to experience. It’s harder if you feel like you can’t talk about it, no one will stand up for you, or you have to go through it alone.
We all need to be vigilant in putting an end to white supremacy in our own communities.
Remove disinformation and hate materials that you come across and SPEAK UP when faced with racism in your networks.
How to Help
Hate Has No Home Here posters are available (free) at i deal coffee on Nassau for neighbours who wish to collect and or distribute them. Show your neighbours you hear them and they’re not in this alone.
For our neighbours in Kensington Market, FoKM can help you press charges, access legal & counseling services, and connect you with a caring community.
If your home or business in Chinatown or the Market has been vandalised we’ll send volunteers to remove disinformation stickers and see what we can do to help with repairs.
Organizations to support
Friends of Chinatown
The Chinese Canadian National Council for Social Justice
Red Canary Song
https://www.redcanarysong.net/
Butterfly Migrant Sex Workers
#HHNHH #StopAsianHate
Sources
Canadian Race Relations Foundation. https://www.instagram.com/p/
Anti-lockdown Marches in Kensington Market
Friends of Kensington Market does not condone the anti-lockdown marches that have recently been passing through the neighbourhood. We will not tolerate public endangerment, racism, or harassment at any time, let alone when our community is already suffering.
While it is not entirely clear who is marching or why, these marches are large gatherings, often maskless, during a pandemic. They have threatened to rush our shops, and multiple residents have been assaulted. Our neighbours have observed signs of white supremacist and radical alt-right organizations within this group including the Knights Templar cross, a symbol carried by hate groups in Charlottesville. Following the “white nationalist” support of Adamson BBQ, there are serious concerns that these “anti-lockdown” rallies are thinly veiled white nationalist/supremacist rallies.
White supremacy and protests that don’t respect public health and safety measure during a pandemic will not be tolerated in Kensington and should not be accommodated anywhere. Freedom of speech ends when you enact and advocate for violence and public harm. As a community, we will oppose behaviour or beliefs that put our neighbours, businesses and visitors at risk.
Here are some of the ways that you can help:
Write to your rep! Ask them why gatherings that violate lockdown measures are getting police escorts instead of being fined and dispersed. Tell them to take concrete actions that show they condemn white supremacy.
CONTACT YOUR REP!
Call or email Mike Layton
416 392 4009
Call or email the Mayor:
(416) 397-2489
Contact the Premier
https://correspondence.premier.gov.on.ca/…/default.aspx
CONTACT POLICE
Kensington Community Police Officers:
14 Division
416-808-1400
http://www.torontopolice.on.ca/directory/mail.php?id=407
52 Division
416-808-5200
http://www.torontopolice.on.ca/directory/mail.php?id=448
This is not about increasing police powers this is about equitable policing. Anti-lockdown protestors must be accountable to the same basic standards of public safety.
LET US HELP YOU If you have experienced racialized trauma or these protests are affecting your health and wellbeing please get in touch and we’ll help you access local resources.
AND
Support anti-hate initiatives:
Coalition Against White Supremacy & Islamophobia (CAWSI)
BLAC Black Legal Action Centre
SUPPORT BLACK-OWNED LOCAL BUSINESSES!