A City of Belleville councillor doesn’t like what he’s been seeing on flags, t-shirts, and lawn signs lately.
Sean Kelly says he’s seeing what he calls “hate signs” popping up throughout the community, often profane and promoting hatred against individuals or groups of people.
The proliferation of signs has come recently as the Freedom Convoy movement has gathered steam.
Kelly says he respects people’s rights to their opinions but things are going too far.
“To me, this is me speaking. Those hate signs have no place in Belleville. They’re vulgar and young people are reading them as they walk to school and see them on the front lawns.”
Mayor Mitch Panciuk agreed with Kelly’s comments saying the signs were in keeping with a steady decline of civility in society in general.
Kelly said he’d be checking with other municipalities who are considering ways to regulate what’s considered hate signs and language.
Just last summer Belleville’s Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Committee, of which Kelly is Chair, launched a sign campaign known as “Hate Has No Place Here” which proved popular with the public.
