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The city and Richmond RCMP are teaming up in a bid to eradicate racially-motivated hate incidents.

Photo courtesy Richmond RCMP

City, RCMP emphasize ‘Hate has no place’ initiative

By Richmond Sentinel

Published 10:34 PDT, Mon August 22, 2022

Last Updated: 12:54 PDT, Wed August 24, 2022

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The City of Richmond and Richmond RCMP are launching a call to action to ensure that the city continues to be a safe and welcoming community.

In 2020 and 2021, city council declared: “Racial and discriminatory actions have no place in Richmond, and they have no place in our society.”

Richmond RCMP declared that “Hate has no place in our community,” and pledged that all reported incidents involving hate motivated undertones would receive full attention and oversight.

Richmond RCMP and the city are calling upon members of the community to get more involved. Victims and witnesses are asked to report racially-motivated incidents directly to police as they occur.

“All too often we are learning of hate-motivated incidents through second-hand reports in the news and on social media,” says Chief Supt. Dave Chauhan, officer in charge of the Richmond RCMP. “But in order for our investigators to give these allegations the fulsome attention they deserve, we need to speak directly to victims and witnesses. We need people to come forward to police in the first instance.”

Richmond RCMP recognizes that in some instances “hate incidents” do not involve a criminal offence or meet the definition of a “hate crime” under the Criminal Code. A racist, homophobic, or other abhorrent comment, or a rant to a stranger, are examples of this.

Although it may not meet the threshold of a criminal offence, this type of behaviour has a negative effect on communities, and Richmond RCMP will continue to conduct fulsome investigations on these matters, seeking to understand the root cause of this behaviour and engaging appropriate community partners if required.

“Racial and discriminatory action have no place in Richmond nor in our society, and they will not be tolerated,” says mayor Malcolm Brodie. “Unfortunately, such attitudes exist and are in direct contradiction to the spirit of inclusion we uphold. I urge residents to stand together to address and condemn all forms of discrimination and racism. If you experience or witness a hate incident, do not hesitate to contact the RCMP.

“In 2019, Richmond was one of the first cities to adopt a cultural harmony plan and we have been working diligently with community partners to deliver programs and initiatives to build meaningful bridges amongst cultures and reduce barriers to participation. We also appreciate the work of the Richmond Resilience BC Committee and other community organizations, in developing and launching the Richmond Community Protocol this past spring, which offers mechanisms and supports for the public and community to respond to hate and racist incidents.”

Residents will soon begin seeing posters in city facilities such as libraries, community centres, and other highly visible locations. These posters will remind people that “Hate Has No Place” in Richmond, and will encourage victims and witnesses to report hate incidents to police directly.

“By learning of these incidents as they occur, and by speaking directly to the victims and witnesses, our investigators will able to act more quickly in efforts to stop this harmful behaviour in our community,” says Chauhan.

To report racially-motivated incidents to police:

• Richmond RCMP non-emergency: 604-278-1212

• Richmond RCMP emergency: 9-1-1

• Vancouver Coastal Health (mental health support): 604-204-1111 or vch.ca/richmondmentalhealth

• Crime Stoppers (to remain anonymous): 1-800-222-TIPS (8477) or bccrimestoppers.com