Inquiry into hate somehow left out burning of churches

When Kasari Govender, B.C.’s Human Rights Commissioner, announced Aug. 18 that her office would be holding an official inquiry into “the disturbing surge of hate [during] the pandemic,” she made specific mention not only of “recent instances of racist violence across B.C.,” especially anti-Asian racism, but also of the “rise” of “white supremacy in B.C.”

Moreover, Govender also cited hatred directed against “Indigenous, black, Muslim, Jewish, and queer and trans communities” as reasons for the inquiry, which will start after the Sept. 20 federal election. She later added that the inquiry would examine incidents of hatred against any group protected by the province’s human-rights code, including religions.

However, not once during her video news conference or in her news release did Govender specifically mention the wildfire of anti-Christian, anti-Catholic hatred – a including threats, vandalism, and arson – that rocked the province in June and July following sensational news coverage surrounding the identification of long-lost cemeteries associated with Indian Residential Schools.

It’s an omission that sparked concerns and criticism from both secular and Catholic observers.

Calgary writer Mark Milke, author of The Victim Cult, said in an interview that the exclusion of anti-Christian attacks suggests B.C.’s Office of the Human Rights Commissioner is “blind” to the fact that Catholics are a minority that is “out of favour in elite circles and in popular opinion.”

Milke cautioned those in the secular majority to be aware of their biases and to realize that their “elite position can be injurious to a minority” such as Catholics.

Ed De Vita, B.C. spokesperson for the Catholic Civil Rights League, said in an interview that he was “rather disappointed, and perhaps a bit shocked” that Govender appeared unaware of the rise of hateful attacks against Catholics.

“But I’m not surprised, because it’s par for the course, in which Catholics and Christians have been treated in the past, where acts of discrimination have basically been overlooked,” De Vita said.

He wasn’t certain the omission represented ingrained prejudice or bias, “but it certainly looks that way. And I wouldn’t be surprised if that turns out to be the case.”

The B.C. Catholic reached out to Govender to ask whether the omission was intentional. The commission’s public-relations officer, Elaine O’Connor, declined to forward the questions, pointing instead to Govender’s mention of religion as a protected group.

O’Connor also turned down a request to forward questions about another potentially controversial aspect of the inquiry – the secrecy surrounding it. Govender has said the commission consulted with 23 individuals or groups before finalizing the inquiry’s terms of reference. However, O’Connor said, “As this was a confidential consultation, we are not at liberty to disclose their names.” She did say, however, that representatives of religious groups, including Christian, were involved in the consultation.

Similarly, Govender said the inquiry will not be held in public; rather, the commission will accept submissions from anyone or any group that believes it has experienced hate since the pandemic began. As well, the commission will hold roundtable discussions that will be closed to the public. The closed nature of the hearings is to protect participants from further trauma, commission documents said.

Despite not being part of the consultations Govender’s failure to acknowledge the surge of anti-Catholic hate crimes, the Archdiocese of Vancouver was not critical of the inquiry. “Although we were not among the groups initially consulted during the inquiry's preparation phase, we both expect and look forward to participating in it,” Makani Marquis, senior director of communications, said in a statement.

“We know that many groups have been targeted by hate incidents during the pandemic, including some of our own churches and we welcome the opportunity to share those experiences with the inquiry.”

A former chair of the human rights commission is also looking forward to the proceedings. Mary Woo Sims, who led the NDP-created commission from 1996 until she was fired by a B.C. Liberal government in 2002,  said in an email interview that she believes the inquiry “is an important step in the process of developing strategies that will lead to positive outcomes.”

Sims also defended the commission’s decision to hold closed meetings because, she averred, some participants may fear retaliation or targeting. As well, she said the secrecy appears to reflect a responsible balancing of the rights of privacy of the vulnerable with the public’s rights to know.

On the question of anti-Catholic bias, Sims said, “There's nothing in the commissioner's remarks or the press release that precludes a person or persons and/or institutions from making submissions to the inquiry […] I would encourage those impacted [by hate] to make it known to the commission the impact of hate on them and their community.”

The commission said the investigation phase of the inquiry is expected to take a year. Its final report will include recommendations “to address, prevent and manage outbreaks of hate during times of social upheaval.” More information about the inquiry can be found at hateinquiry.bchumanrights.ca.