“Come on, I’m right here.”
With that, a supposed adult raised his arms as he shouted at federal Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau during a quick stop in Burnaby on Tuesday.
The man – a grown man - was challenging Trudeau to a fight right here in my home community of Burnaby.
The man also supposedly hurled unkind words at Trudeau’s wife, another remarkable act of maturity. You can see more in the video below posted by the CBC.
It was a shameful display and another black mark on our democracy as protests have gone from thoughtful opposition to people throwing rocks and challenging Trudeau to throw down.
I wrote recently about the racism that federal NDP Leader and Burnaby South MP Jagmeet Singh has faced on the campaign trail (and literally his entire life).
It all adds up to an ugly stain on Canada.
And then, on Wednesday morning, I received a real howler of an email from the Conservative Party of Canada.
In it, the party says it will put an end to “Trudeau’s divisive politics.” Yeah, sure. OK. It’s OK to criticize Trudeau’s politics, but it’s a little rich coming from the CPC, which has demonized Trudeau for years. The party has fomented hatred towards Trudeau and is now saying it will end his “divisive politics.”
Maybe look in the mirror first.
Justin Trudeau was met with more angry protesters Monday in Burnaby, B.C., including one man who challenged him to a fight and hurled a slur about his wife. #bcpoli pic.twitter.com/TIdybjAgHl
— CBC British Columbia (@cbcnewsbc) September 14, 2021
This is the kind of garbage that rolls into my inbox during an election.
Meanwhile, we have seen the election dragged into the mud over and over again, leaving voters a little shell-shocked.
I watched the video of the man yelling that he wanted to fight Trudeau and then mumbling something about a third dose of the COVID-19 vaccine.
This is how low things have sunk in Canada. I mean, it's not necessarily anything new. Many remember Jean Chretien when that dude got into his face, but it's just the sheer size and scope of this kind of violent opposition that we shouldn't ignore once the election is over.
Follow Chris Campbell on Twitter @shinebox44.
