Thread: Tory blames immigrants for crime

Tory blames immigrants for crimePublished Friday September 26th, 2008

THE CANADIAN PRESS
CALGARY - Another Conservative is in hot water over controversial comments - this time about immigrants.

Both the Liberals and NDP are demanding that Lee Richardson resign or be fired as the Tory candidate in Calgary Centre for suggesting that immigrants are prone to commit crimes.

Richardson's remarks threaten to undo a vigorous Conservative effort led by Jason Kenney - the party's liaison to minority groups and the Tory candidate in the adjacent riding of Calgary Southeast - to woo immigrant voters.

"Look at who's committing these crimes "¦ They're not the kid that grew up next door," Richardson told the Calgary newsmagazine Fast Forward Weekly.

"Particularly in big cities, we've got people that have grown up in a different culture," he said.

"And they don't have the same background in terms of the stable communities we had 20, 30 years ago in our cities and don't have the same respect for authority or people's person or property."

Richardson later said he regretted his remarks and was referring to a "small minority" of people.

But the opposition demanded his head.

"If Prime Minister (Stephen) Harper does not take action and fire his candidate, one can only assume he condones such attitudes," said Liberal Ujjal Dosanjh.

"It's clear that the old Reform party view toward immigration is still alive and well in this Conservative party."

Liberal Calgary Centre candidate Heesung Kim, herself an immigrant from South Korea, denounced the comments as "disturbing."

"To say that if you weren't born and bred in Canada then you're more likely to be a criminal is completely unbelievable," she said.

The Tory war room quickly fought back, claiming Liberal candidates Hedy Fry, Garth Turner and Keith Martin have also made inappropriate remarks linking immigrants and crime.

But the war-room spinners didn't mention that their respective remarks were made when Turner was a Progressive Conservative MP and Martin a Reformer.

Richardson wasn't immediately available Thursday afternoon. His campaign manager, Randy Dawson, didn't return messages, nor did Kenney or Harper's spokesman, Kory Teneycke.

Fast Forward Weekly reporter Jeremy Klaszus said he called Richardson after shootings in Calgary to ask about the Conservative crime plan.

"He brought it up, not me," said Klaszus, who tape-recorded the interview. "I didn't ask anything regarding immigration at all."

The Conservatives have vigorously sought to make inroads with the immigrant communities that were once largely enclaves of Liberal voters.

Many newcomers to Canada in the 1960s and 1970s stayed loyal to the Liberals, who removed racial and ethnic barriers from the immigration system in 1967 in favour of a points system that chose immigrants based on skills and education.

http://telegraphjournal.canadaeast.com/ ... cle/427867

Why should he apoligize for telling the truth. That's the problem in America also, we are accused of being racists and bigots for telling the truth. Illegals ARE more prone to crime and if you want to get real they are criminals to begin with because they are here illegally.