Just who is listening?

In April 2015 Surrey Mayor, RCMP, School Board and CFSEU hosted a forum where 700 plus community members attended to find solutions to deal with ongoing shootings in Surrey. More than 75 percent of these attendees were from South Asian community.

A year later, April 19, 2016 similar forum was done for the same reason. Close to 120 people attended this form and just a little 0ver 50 members would have been from South Asian background.

What happened? Do you see something wrong with this picture?

Was this not the very community missing from this forum that the mayor has been appealing to become active in investigating since last April? Was this not the community that the Mayor has been racially profiling for bad parenting to explain the uncontrollable shootings since last April? Yes it is!

Mayor of the Surry did not evaluate success of the community. She did not review the statistics on the South Asian children going to colleges, universities and professional fields. She missed recognizing countless parents dedicating many hours each week taking their kids to sports activities, educational programs, and volunteer programs. Mayor also forgot the role of this community in building up Surrey and finically contributing towards the social, political and governmental organizations. She even missed that year after year from 100,000 to over 300,000 of this community member gather to celebrate Vasakhi and not a single incident is reported of violence or mischief.

So on what basis did she made South Asian community responsible for these shootings? This division that mayor has created in the society has yielded the results already, the very community on which she wasted so many sound bites to appeal to help the police decided not to engage in another disrespectful, demeaning and fact less rhetoric, there was a huge NO SHOW at this event.

statement based on less than 12 kids that are known to police for criminal activities involving guns and drugs. Is it fair to label a community this way?

During an interview, I opening demanded on CBC that Mayor must apologize to the community at large for destroying the image and very harmony that the Surrey community has built over many decades. Not only should the South Asian community object but the entire society should demand that for the best future of the Surrey.

Can you even begin to imagine the impact of such hate and racially driven speech on the diverse mix of kids in school, parents at sports fields and work? Do you not think that a silent judgment will penetrate in people's mind for one another from her unthoughtful comments?

Now, to give her a benefit of the doubt, one must ask if this racial profiling helped the mayor and RCMP during this past year in catching the gangsters, and in gathering evidence to put these criminals behind bar? Answer is no. Last year people still had faith in the organization that that they will provide support and guidance to the community. However, starting from that day onwards until about a week ago, Mayor has repeatedly made offensive remarks blaming the community for its parenting styles and overtly blaming the gang problem as a south Asian problem and not that of the society in general. Result was a very few showed up to listen to her complaints again.

Facts are there are 70,000 kids go to Surrey school in a year and only handful or less than 12 kids are involved in this current drug turf war as well as personal rivalry. If you look into these numbers it is no way a community problem. It is a society program overall, that not only includes parents who can do better to care for their kids but also the government who can provide better social politics and RCMP if funds properly who can play an active role in prevention. Yes kids are involved in recreationally drugs but that is the reality of the entire society in general and vast majority are not drug addicts or gangsters or criminal as they are being portrayed here.

This division that mayor has created has yielded the results already, the very community on which she wasted so many sound bites to appeal to help the police decided not to engage in another disrespectful, demeaning and fact less rhetoric. . Is it that hard for people to see that labelling a community is such harsh colours is distasteful, pointless and ignorant?

Hate and divisive speech up until this form was distasteful; however, forum on the other hand was absolutely opposite to what the mayor has been projecting. It was

inclusive, caring and responsible. In the forum I said I would have appealed to all my friends and acquaintances repeatedly if I had known it was going to be this respectful and beneficial.

In the forum I openly appealed to chief of RCMP, CFESU and school board that please continue this inclusive approach in media as that will bring the community together to build safe neighbourhood. Most interested and appreciated aspect of this forum was that every government official in this forum spoke like a parent and as part of the community.That's what was most encouraging out of this forum.

Hope she will not make more mistakes in the future and if she will not stop, I will continue objecting to all of her absurd comments with my equal and opposite force. To save the future, one must act accordingly in present.

Attached pictures are the contrast all shall see to evaluate the above written.

Meera Gill

Our Global Village Charitable Foundation