Racism must be fought

I wanted to thank the Journal Pioneer for having the guts to print this morning’s editorial, “Racism Video Reveals a very big problem” (17 May 2018), condemning the recent racist outrage that took place in Lethbridge, Alberta, where three men were berated and insulted by an out of control woman. Holding this type of increasingly ugly public behaviour up for scrutiny and analysis is long overdue. The editorial’s sense of justice, fair play, and restrained anger, was most professional and craftsman-like.

Unfortunately, as the racial incident at the Canadian Legion in Tignish in January 2018 showed, we on the Island are not immune to engaging in and displaying the same type of vile racist behaviour. The fact that 54 per cent of all people on P.E.I., based on survey results published in The Guardian, thought that there was nothing wrong in what happened in Tignish is both revealing and disturbing. This suggests that we have a problem here. And you don’t have to be from Alabama or Lethbridge to be a racist red neck.

Central to this resurgent racism is the resentment of anybody who is different or who works to get ahead. And then there are always those who feel the need to feel superior to others.

Interestingly, over the years I have kept some of the more ugly, ignorant racist rants that were put up on electronic comment boards by Islanders. They make discouraging reading. Many were blood curdling racist screeds venting pure hatred. Some of these good Islanders sounded as if they were members of the KKK or right-wing paramilitary groups.

We on P.E.I. are not isolated from or immune to the various disturbing right-wing political and racist trends that are emerging throughout the world. But racism, regardless of its form or location, be it Alberta, Quebec, P.E.I., Mississippi, Israel, Austria, or France, must be fought.

Richard Deaton, Stanley Bridge