B.C. Conservative campaign director under fire for anti-Islam posts
National Council of Canadian Muslims 'deeply hurt' by social media posts from Katy Merrifield
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Council → hurt → Merrifield
The campaign director for the B.C. Conservatives is facing criticism over anti-Islam posts she shared on social media earlier this year, just days after the party fired another candidate over his own offensive posts.
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party → face → posts
Campaign director Katy Merrifield posted on X in June in response to a U.K. inquiry about child sexual exploitation: "F--k Islam. Defend Western civilization."
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Merrifield → post → civilization
The post was later removed.
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post → remove → ?
"We are deeply hurt by the comments made by B.C. Conservative Campaign Director Katy Merrifield ... [and] several subsequent posts that demonstrate a pattern of promoting Islamophobic views," the National Council of Canadian Muslims (NCCM) wrote in a post on X Friday.
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Council → hurt → Friday
Merrifield later removed the post.
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Merrifield → remove → post
This comes after the party dropped Joachim Agou, its candidate for Victoria-Beacon Hill, over offensive social media posts targeting Palestinians and Pakistanis that came to light this week, which the council said made Merrifield's posts especially concerning.
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posts → come → light
Merrifield, who previously worked as head of communications for federal Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre, is the campaign director for the B.C. Conservative Party and not a candidate.
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who → work → Party
She acknowledged her past comments in a post Friday, saying they stemmed from her experience as a rape survivor and from feeling "heartbroken, horrified and angry" after reading accounts of sexual abuse involving young girls in the U.K. and the failure of authorities to protect them.
"I took down my original post within hours because my anger was directed at the extremism used to justify these horrific crimes, not at Muslims or their faith," Merrifield wrote.
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Merrifield → acknowledge → Muslims
But the NCCM said "at no point did [Merrifield] apologize for her statement or recognize the pain it caused," adding that she also did not address what it called a pattern of promoting "a range of problematic messages" on social media.
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it → say → media
"There is no room for hate in any area of Canadian politics," the NCCM said.
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NCCM → be → politics
Rise in Islamophobia
The NCCM said B.C. has seen a significant rise in Islamophobia, pointing to incidents involving vehicles being driven at people, attacks on imams and vandalism at mosques.
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B.C. → say → mosques
Statistics Canada figures show police-reported hate crimes targeting Muslims across Canada rose by roughly 173 per cent between 2020 and 2024, from 84 incidents to 229.
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crimes → show → 229
In June, a Victoria imam said he was assaulted outside his home by a man who told him to "go back to your country."
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who → say → country
National Council of Canadian Muslims CEO Stephen Brown is seen in a file photo.
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Brown → see → photo
The NCCM says it will engage in 'good-faith' conversations with the B.C. Conservatives, 'but Islamophobia must be addressed.'
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Islamophobia → say → Conservatives
"We will engage in good-faith conversation with the B.C. Conservatives about these troubling revelations, but Islamophobia must be addressed," the NCCM wrote.
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NCCM → engage → revelations
B.C. NDP Leader David Eby spoke to reporters Saturday morning from Courtenay, B.C., saying Merrifield’s posts highlighted by the NCCM were "so hateful, directed to a very specific religious community in our province," and deserved consequences.
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posts → speak → consequences
He said if Muslims practising Islam in B.C. can be targeted by the campaign director of a major political party, then "no community in this province is safe."
"[Doerkson] has to remove her," Eby said.
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Eby → say → her
CBC News asked B.C. Conservative Leader Lorne Doerkson for a statement but did not receive one before publication.
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News → ask → publication
The B.C. Conservative Party replied to a request for comment with a statement from Zeeshan Wahla, its candidate for Surrey City Centre.
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Party → reply → Centre
Wahla said the language used in Merrifield’s original post from several months ago was "unacceptable," but said it was clear her reaction was "informed by her past sexual trauma."
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reaction → say → trauma
He said the difference between Agou being dropped over his posts and Merrifield’s situation comes down to the former candidate "inciting violence," while Merrifield was "reacting to violence."
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Merrifield → say → violence
CentreBC Leader Elenore Sturko, in a video posted to Instagram Friday, said just a day after the B.C. Conservatives fired a candidate over "racist, deplorable garbage on the internet," past posts from another member of the campaign team had come to light.
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posts → post → light
"It’s the same old people and the same old Conservative party," she said.
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she → ’ → ?
Sturko said if Doerkson "can’t stand up for all British Columbians," then he should not "stand up and ask to be made premier."
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he → say → Columbians
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