Dear Editor:
I am writing to you from North Idaho, although I was born and raised in Vancouver and now reside in North Vancouver; I choose to vacation here and have done so for more than a half century. For many at home, North Idaho is known for far right-wing views, including white supremacy.
My son and a pal were down for the weekend and we had a great time. The type of racism and ignorance many think flourishes in Idaho did not show up until my son got home and was serving a customer in North Vancouver.
The customer demanded my son go back to Mexico, not my son’s birthplace. The customer’s daughter was in tears at her father’s demands.
I dearly wish ignorance were limited by geography but clearly it is not. As the father of a young man of colour, this is the first time in my son’s 20-year lifetime I have heard of such staggering evidence of him being attacked based on race. This behaviour is abhorrent yet based on this experience it is tough to deny it exists, out loud, in North Van. We must all do better.
David Youngson
North Vancouver
