Thank you for publishing Sherron Soo’s letter in today’s (October 27) paper. It is important for community members to know that these types of incidents occur in our beautiful city.
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Sherron’s story may be surprising to some, but it is something that happens to racialized community members on a regular basis.
I have facilitated antiracism training in Campbell River and around Vancouver Island for many years, and this past year my colleagues and I adapted our in-person training to the online (Zoom) format.
As a way to build awareness around the rise of anti-Asian racism in Canada due to COVID, my daughter and I organized and facilitated several workshops this summer. After our press release was printed and disseminated via email, I received an email from a Campbell River man telling me that his research indicates that Canada is not a racist country and by talking about it I was contributing to racism.
It was concerning that someone in my community took the time to email me directly and chastised me for talking about the racism that my family, friends and community experience regularly.
So thank you for taking Sherron Soo’s letter seriously and for printing it. It’s important to acknowledge that it happens before we can address it.
Thanh Tazumi
Campbell River