People dressed in so-called "ethnic costumes" were gathered outside a conservative rally in Toronto Thursday night to protest after a member of the local Conservative candidate campaign sent an e-mail for people "national folklore costumes" to appear at a photo-op.
An email signed by a worker of the campaign for the conservative candidate Etobicoke Centre, said he was looking for people to create a "photo-op on all multicultural groups that support Ted Opitz our local Conservative candidate and Prime Minister."
People wear placards on "ethnic costumes" at a counter rally outside a conservative event in Toronto. (Kady o ' Malley/CBC)Opitz said Wednesday that the e-mail was written without his knowledge and that it supports.
Earlier this week, group Toronto colour of poverty - color change responded to repeated talk of "ethnic voting" in the countryside with a parody of the video clip of Beat It's Michael Jackon.
A Facebook page formed after the email was disclosed calls e-mail "patronizing and offensive" and invited the people to participate in a counter rally outside the Etobicoke event.
"Whether you are Chinese, Arab, Portuguese, Italian, South Asian, Irish, Vulcan, Klingon, Zombie or Ewok.". Show the conservatives 'ethnic voters' are not accessories for photo-ops, "explains Facebook page."
Kady O'Malley the CBC estimated that at least 20 people has proved for the counter rally Thursday night.
Salmaan Khan, a student of Ryerson, who helped organize the event, said he felt it was important to respond to the email.
"Personally, as a person of color, I found the comments that have been made in the email of the offensive conservative camp," he said Thursday. "We are not ethnic groups, we are Canadians.
He said cultural garb is not necessarily a costume.
"But this is the way which they the made, and I assume that this is what we show in.."
Khan, said earlier Thursday and that it was not clear how many people will attend the event, or what they are - but he says that some people had the intention to come dressed as conservative leader Stephen Harper.
"Do you have all the cultural groups who wishes to participate by someone with at the event in an ethnic costume?" "We are looking for one or two people in your community," said the e-mail signed by Zeljko 'zed' Zidaric.
"The opportunity is to have up to 20 persons in national folklore costumes that represent their ethnic origins," the e-mail said.
Liberal leader Michael Ignatieff criticized the call for people in costume.
"When I have meetings, I would rearrange people in ethnic costumes behind it," Ignatieff said Thursday. "It is not costumes, for the love of the sky."
But Harper said Thursday that the email represents his party approach.
"History is absolutely bizarre," said Harper. "We have greater representation, we get better support than ever in the whole of all cultural communities in this country, and this is not how we do business."
No partisan Conservatives do retroussée in the rally of costume.
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