Unitarian Church Targeted

[u4ic]

Church defaced with swastika
'White power' on doors greets worshippers
Trish Audette with files from Susan Ruttan, The Edmonton Journal

Published: Monday, January 23, 2006

EDMONTON -- Police are investigating a possible hate crime after members of the Unitarian Church of Edmonton arrived for their morning service Sunday to find a swastika and the words "white power" painted on the church's wooden doors.

Const. Wes Lavoie said the graffiti did not appear to be the work of young pranksters. He said the Edmonton police's hate and bias crime section would be informed of the case.

Sylvia Krogh, president of the church's board of directors, said the vandals who used black paint on the doors would have done so between
9 p.m. Saturday, when the last group left the former warehouse at 10804 119th St., and 9:30 a.m. Sunday, when members started arriving for morning service.

"We feel especially violated because it goes against everything we stand for," she said, pointing to the non-denominational nature of the church.
"We cherish and appreciate all different perspectives," Krogh said. "I'm sad that they had to resort to this as a tactic instead of being involved in a genuine dialogue."


http://www.canada.com/edmontonjournal/news/cityplus/story.html?id=eb9a3756-88f0-452f-a03f-b8a1e5a78c26&k=84414


This is so upsetting for me. It's not my regular congregation, but I've been to a few service there. It's just...sick.

[LiberalEsto]

1. !!!

I am just astonished.

I'm astonished that people do this kind of stuff anywhere, to anyone.
Particularly in Canada, which I always thought was a nice calm place.

UUs (I'm one) take strong stands on controversial issues such as gay marriage, so I can see where some paranoid, narrow-minded person would feel threatened by UUs and act out those fears in a destructive and hateful way. Not that that justifies such an attack.

I hope the folks at this church can talk to the person or persons who did this, and try to change the person's point of view to one of tolerance.

[u4ic]

5. Although Edmonton is fairly liberal,

Alberta has the largest percentage of fundies in Canada. The provincial government are intolerant right wingers, and now, with a new Prime Minister, the federal is, as well. They won't be able to do much about it, luckily, because of the minority status.

While this type of incident isn't common, it isn't altogether unheard of here, either. There will always be those who want to spread the message of hate. :-(

Thank you for your thoughts. :hug: (I'm a Unitarian, too)

[Ranec]

2. This is so unimaginable to me.

If you are attacking a UU church with a "white power" slogan, what is it that you are attacking?

It is just the notion of tolerance that so scares someone. Just the idea that someone else isn't as bigoted as them that threatens them.

[u4ic]

6. I agree wholeheartedly

:hi:

[ayeshahaqqiqa]

3. Pray for the congregation

and pray for the misguided souls who did this, for their path is one of darkness and not of Light.

[u4ic]

7. Thank you

I am, too. :hug:

[u4ic]

4. Police will root out hate crimes, chief promises

EDMONTON - Police Chief Mike Boyd declared hate crimes one of his main priorities Tuesday as he met with a group of religious leaders at a church that was vandalized over the weekend.

Boyd met with leaders from the Unitarian, United, Jewish, Muslim and Sikh faiths at the Unitarian Church of Edmonton, where a swastika and the words "white power" were spray-painted on the door sometime Saturday night or Sunday morning. "The Edmonton Police Service will continue to aggressively and assertively go out to the community and root this out where it exists," Boyd said after a 30-minute meeting.

"It's important for us to deter these kinds of offences from being committed or to suppress the opportunity to commit this kind of offence."

It was the second hate crime incident within a month. On Dec. 24, the Beth Shalom Synagogue on Jasper Avenue was vandalized with a metre-wide swastika and line a drawn through the acronym ZOG, which stands for Zionist Occupation Government. Religious leaders united that day to condemn the act and show solidarity.

http://www.canada.com/edmontonjournal/news/cityplus/story.html?id=953d538c-fc74-4a86-89d3-d7bb456cbcdb&k=12008

[mdmc]

8. sounds like a lot of intolerence

just awful... My thoughts and prayers..peace and low stress,
mdmc

[u4ic]

9. Thanks, mdmc!

They still haven't caught the culprit(s) yet however. :-(

So far, ours (UU as well) hasn't been targeted. Hopefully, it, nor any others, won't be!

[mdmc]

10. and this is up in Canada?

Down in Mississippi there have been some destruction of churches...