Ottawa: An Indian-origin man, Ashwin Annamalai, recently shared a troubling experience of being targeted with hate while walking in the Kitchener-Waterloo area of Ontario, Canada.
In a video posted on social media, he described how an elderly woman insulted him, telling him to “go back to India” because of his Indian heritage. The woman also made offensive gestures, including showing him the middle finger.
The once welcoming community of Kitchener-Waterloo has seen a disturbing rise in hate, particularly against people of colour. Here’s a personal account of what I experienced today: A random woman gave me the finger & spewed hate while I was out for a walk at Erb/Avondale 🧵 1/n pic.twitter.com/TxvXeXW3Yd
— Ashwin Annamalai (@ignorantsapient) October 15, 2024
What Indian-origin man wrote on social media
Annamalai posted a long message on X, explaining how disturbing the incident was. He said that hate crimes against people of colour have been on the rise in the area. He wrote, “A random woman gave me the finger & spewed hate while I was out for a walk.”
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The video captured the woman angrily telling him, “I am being aggressive to you because there are too many Indians in Canada. And I want you to go back to India. Your parents are not Canadians, and your grandparents are not Canadians.”
In his social media post, Annamalai explained that the woman wrongly assumed he was Indian and demanded that he leave Canada immediately. When he calmly questioned her, she continued with her racist remarks, even expressing her dislike for other communities in the area, as reported by News 18.
According to Annamalai, the woman accused him of not speaking English and insisted he should leave the country.
India-origin man expresses disappointment
Annamalai pointed out that such hate-filled incidents have been occurring more frequently in the region. He also shared a report showing that the Waterloo region has the highest number of police-reported hate crimes in Canada. He further said that racism, particularly against international students, has been growing.
Annamalai expressed disappointment in the current state of the community, emphasising that blaming others is not the solution to any challenges. He urged the community to come together to address these issues.
The number of Indian permanent residents in Canada has jumped significantly, from 39,340 in 2015 to 139,785 in 2023, reflecting the broader trend of immigration growth.
