Alberta RCMP is warning of what it describes as a “spike” in hate incidents against the LGBTQ2 community and is encouraging residents to report anything that could be considered a hate crime.
RCMP said a hate incident or crime are actions committed against a person or property, motivated partly or entirely by prejudice, bias or hate against a group or community.
That includes groups defined by real or perceived age, skin colour, national or ethnic origin, race, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression or any other similar factor, police said.
So far in June — marked as Pride Month by LGBTQ2 communities across the world — there have been two Pride crosswalks vandalized in Alberta towns.
The crosswalk outside the Ponoka United Church was vandalized sometime overnight between May 31 and June 1, according to a representative of the Ponoka Pride Society.
Vandals in Okotoks defaced a Pride crosswalk in Okotoks on June 13, according to police.
Other crosswalks have been vandalized in recent years across Alberta, like one in Lethbridge and one in Olds.
A severed pig’s head was left on a crosswalk outside of a K-9 school in Parkland County, west of Edmonton.
“Even if you aren’t sure if an incident is illegal, you are encouraged to report it,” said police.
“In addition to holding perpetrators responsible, reporting hate incidents allows us to provide victims with support services, potentially assists with other investigations and documents repeated behaviours, and sends an important message that these acts will not be tolerated in our communities.”
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There have also been multiple demonstrations against the wider LGBTQ2 community across the province in recent years.
Organizers of Chinook Blast, a winter festival in Calgary, cancelled some drag performances due to protests planned at the venue.
Earlier this year in Calgary, a protest was held at a drag brunch and another in downtown, opposing trans people being allowed in the changeroom in public pools that aligns with their gender.
Another protest against trans people in bathrooms was held outside of a Calgary high school in May.
A Calgary man was arrested after entering a library classroom where a drag storytime was happening shouting homophobic and transphobic slurs, according to police.
A drag reading at a Lethbridge library drew a protest and counter-protest last weekend.
Police encourage anyone who witnesses or hears of any hate-motivated behaviours to report them by calling the local RCMP detachment or submit anonymous tips on Crime Stoppers.