DAY 100: Email sent to Ben Lobb, Lisa Thompson and Glen McNeil

Dear MP Ben Lobb (Huron-Bruce), MPP Lisa Thompson (Huron-Bruce), and Warden Glen McNeil (Huron County/ACW Township):

Today marks 100 days since the community first called upon you to publicly denounce neo-Nazi ideology and white supremacy in response to the appearance of hate activity in Huron County.

Monday was Remembrance Day, a time when we honour the memory of those who paid the ultimate sacrifice fighting tyranny, fascism, and Nazism. Next year will mark 80 years since the end of WWII.

How odd it is in this context that for months a sign at the entrance of Goderich has been promoting the name of a hate network that idolizes Adolf Hitler. How disturbing that you have all failed so far to speak out against that sign.

In August 2024, a group of neo-Nazis from the U.S., Quebec, and across Ontario met together in Goderich. They posed for combat-training photos at the Goderich high school track. They posed for photos with their white nationalist flags including those of the Great Lakes Active Club and Nationalist-13. These are men who espouse deeply violent beliefs and whose primary stated objective is the creation of an all-white ethnostate. These are people who advocate for genocide, who seek to trigger a “racial holy war,” and who seek to “finish Hitler’s work.”

Here is the link to that story yet again:

https://www.antihate.ca/us_neo_nazis_visit_canada_meeting_white_supremacist_active_clubs

How chilling your collective silence is in this context. I direct you again to our petition which now stands at over 800 signatures: change.org/nohateinhuron

We are calling upon you to publicly denounce hate activity in Huron County. We are calling upon you to denounce white supremacy and neo-Nazi ideology in all of its forms, including the White Lives Matter movement. This should not be difficult.

I could have never imagined that any elected Canadian official would ever hesitate to denounce Nazi belief systems when called upon to do so. The fact that in 2024 I find myself being represented politically by three of them at the same time is nothing short of horrifying.

Some have said I can catch more flies with honey than with vinegar. I am not trying to catch flies.

I am trying to stop violent extremists from seeking safe harbour within Huron County. I am trying to stop the self-identified torchbearers of Adolf Hitler’s brutality from setting up shop and terrorizing my friends, neighbours, and loved ones.

I encourage you to consider the safety of our communities. I encourage you to consider your own personal and political legacies. I encourage you to consider the veterans of WWII whose honour is tarnished by your silent complicity.

I look forward to your responses and to sharing them with our supporters.

Sincerely, 

Patrick Corvyn

Founder, No Hate in Huron

I, Patrick Corvyn, am a resident of Goderich and Huron County. 

I strive for a world in which all people are free to pursue joyous lives without fear of harassment, cruelty, or violence. 

I celebrate and cherish diversity, inclusion, compassion, and courage. 

I unequivocally denounce Nazi and neo-Nazi ideologies in all their original and modern forms.

I call on our local leaders to do the same: change.org/nohateinhuron