A woman was recorded telling a teenager to go back to her country during a protest outside of the Southern Okanagan Secondary School.
Image Credit: TikTok/Kai.Allen
February 16, 2022 - 3:56 PM
A south Okanagan woman who hurled racist abuse at a high school student during a protest outside an Oliver school is facing a $2,300 fine.
Oliver RCMP confirmed it has not issued a ticket as yet but the woman has been identified and charges are forthcoming.
The incident happened Friday, Feb. 11, at the South Okanagan Secondary School in Oliver where parents had gathered outside the school for an anti-COVID mandate protest.
A widely shared video, which has since been removed from social media, shows a woman yelling racist profanities at a female Punjabi teenager.
The woman tells her, "I deserve to be in this country, do you?" before saying she should go back to her country.
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"The actions of these protestors (are) unacceptable," Oliver RCMP Sgt. Don Wrigglesworth said in an email. "The safety of children at school is very important and a place of learning appears to have been violated."
Oliver RCMP refused to identify the woman, but several media outlets have named her as Silke Schulze of Oliver.
She is now facing a $2,300 fine under the Access to Services COVID-19 Vaccination Act, RCMP said.
The Access to Services COVID-19 Vaccination Act was introduced in November 2021 and prevents anyone from protesting within 20 metres of a school.
Sgt. Wrigglesworth said police officers did attend the school and observed a small group of anti-mask protestors near the school but off of school property.
"There was no indication of unruly behaviour and the officers working were required to attend to other calls for service," Sgt. Wrigglesworth said.
It appears the protest got heated once the officers had left.
Sgt. Wrigglesworth said Oliver RCMP continues to liaise with the school administration, Oliver's Mayor and council, and leaders of its Indo-Canadian and First Nations Community.
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