Police in Abbotsford, B.C., aren’t sure if they’re dealing with a growing white supremacist problem or if a few "small−minded" people are behind the distribution of a pamphlet disparaging a holiday for Martin Luther King Jr. in the United States.
Police said documents sealed inside plastic bags were thrown early Sunday from a vehicle and onto the front yards of more than 70 homes in the city that sits on the U.S. border at Washington state.
The documents were apparently from the "Loyal White Knights KKK," referencing the Ku Klux Klan hate group that was particularly active during the American civil rights movement, Const. Ian MacDonald said Monday, on Martin Luther King Day.
He said the headline calls the assassinated U.S. civil rights leader a "communist pervert."
"And it goes down from there," MacDonald said of the content, adding it wasn’t necessary to reveal everything in the pamphlet.
There was a similar incident last October, but fewer pamphlets were handed out, he said. He’s not sure if the hate issue is widespread in the Fraser Valley community.
"We clearly have a problem with at least a few idiots. I wouldn’t want to give that any more credence. I’m not aware of any movement."
MacDonald said police don’t want to give any more attention to the people or groups involved.
"I fear that what we have are two small−minded, ignorant people who are having a great laugh and thinking they’ve created a big hue and cry over the fact they’ve downloaded something from the Internet and thrown it on people’s lawns."
Abbotsford police have asked for help from the B.C. Hate Crimes Team so investigators experienced in dealing with racists documents can look at the pamphlets.
MacDonald said police have three good security videos that show a dark−coloured Dodge Ram being used by those delivering the pamphlets and that officers may be able to see a licence plate number. While a large section of Abbotsford is on the Canada−U.S. border, MacDonald said it seems like a waste of time to dissuade Canadians from celebrating an American holiday.
Last October, police charged a 47−year old man with uttering threats, assault and causing a disturbance after a hate−filled rant was caught on video.
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