As a resident of Duncan I’m distressed about the rise in hateful rhetoric from groups such as Canadian Citizens Against Crime and Public Drug Abuse. Founder Travis Rankin has been quoted in several media outlets in the last few months, including this one, and now the rally the group is planning for Friday could have serious and dangerous consequences for our most vulnerable community members.

This protest is based in fear, not in facts. Rankin and his group equate drug use and homelessness with crime. Evidence demonstrates that unhoused people, people who use substances and people who experience mental illness are significantly more likely to be targets of crime, rather than perpetrators.