Close X
Tuesday, November 26, 2024
ADVT 
National

Matt Whitman, Halifax City Councillor, Accused Of Racism After 'Chinese Fire Drill' Video

Darpan News Desk, 28 Mar, 2017 11:52 AM
    HALIFAX — Police say they are looking into a video of a Halifax councillor and provincial Progressive Conservative candidate leaping from a car and laughing as he yells, "Chinese fire drill!" amid accusations that it is racially insensitive.
     
    RCMP Cpl. Dal Hutchinson said Tuesday that officers are reviewing the video posted by Coun. Matt Whitman to determine what action, if any, is required.
     
    "We'll look at it to see if it warrants us conducting an investigation," he said.
     
    Whitman removed the short video Sunday, a week after he posted it to his YouTube page. At the time, he said it had become a "distraction."
     
    The roughly 12-second video shows Whitman running around the car with a passenger after he screams the expression, prompting several people on Twitter to accuse him of being racially insensitive.
     
    "'Chinese fire drill' is the kind of thing that should get people fired from public office," tweeted Melissa Mackie on Saturday.
     
    Whitman, who is also the Progressive Conservative candidate for Hammonds Plains-Lucasville, would not comment, but said in a message that he wants to continue meeting with constituents.
     
    "This past Sunday I decided to remove the video after seeing the distraction it became," he said in a text message to Global News. "I look forward to continuing to meet with constituents in Hammonds Plains-Lucasville to talk about the issues that matter to them."
     
    Progressive Conservative Leader Jamie Baillie was not available for an interview about the video, and the party declined to give a comment.
     
    Senator Wanda Thomas Bernard, who is a professor at Dalhousie University, said the expression is concerning because of its history.
     
    "A concern that I have about the term is the racist origin and hence racist overtones," she said in an email.
     
    The term dates back to a botched fire drill during the Second World War, according to University of King's College professor Simon Kow.
     
    "Some people will find it offensive," he said. "It obviously taps into a stereotype about Chinese, meaning something which is chaotic, confused, incompetent, that sort of thing."
     
    Kow, who is of Chinese descent, said in the context of more extreme comments made by public figures, the content of the video isn't surprising.
     
    "It's not OK," he said. "People should be careful how they use language."
     
    The RCMP has said police are also investigating whether the video was made while the car was on the road, and the force discourages people from this type of action while driving.

    MORE National ARTICLES

    Ontario Doctor Says He Was Too Obese To Rub His Penis On Patients

    Ontario Doctor Says He Was Too Obese To Rub His Penis On Patients
    Two patients alleged Dr. Rodion Andrew Kunynetz pressed his genitals against their legs during the course of an examination.

    Ontario Doctor Says He Was Too Obese To Rub His Penis On Patients

    Health Canada Seizes Infertility, Breast Cancer Drugs Sold Online

    Health Canada Seizes Infertility, Breast Cancer Drugs Sold Online
    The agency says it has seized 10 products from EPCA Shipping Inc., which it says is the Canadian distributor for Extreme Peptides, a company that sells health products online.

    Health Canada Seizes Infertility, Breast Cancer Drugs Sold Online

    First Nations business forum to discuss BC resource opportunities

    First Nations business forum to discuss BC resource opportunities
    First Nations leaders have been calling for greater involvement in the resource enterprises which take place on their territories, says BC Assembly of First Nations

    First Nations business forum to discuss BC resource opportunities

    DARPAN’s 10 with Sergeant Jag Khosa

    DARPAN’s 10 with Sergeant Jag Khosa
    Prevention, education and awareness is the key to prevent our next generation from getting into gangs. Enforcement also plays a huge role in holding those accountable who pose the highest risk to public safety. 

    DARPAN’s 10 with Sergeant Jag Khosa

    Two-year-old Boy Dies After Being Hit By Vehicle On Rural B.C. Property

    Two-year-old Boy Dies After Being Hit By Vehicle On Rural B.C. Property
    North Okanagan RCMP Const. Jocelyn Noseworthy issued a news release saying the two-year-old boy was hit by a vehicle Monday afternoon.

    Two-year-old Boy Dies After Being Hit By Vehicle On Rural B.C. Property

    B.C. Man Shot By Police Repeatedly Stabbed Himself Before Shooting: Witnesses

    Naverone Woods, 23, was shot inside the Safeway by officers on the morning of Dec. 28, 2014, and died after he was taken to hospital.

    B.C. Man Shot By Police Repeatedly Stabbed Himself Before Shooting: Witnesses