TORONTO -- Christine Parkinson placed a Pride sign on the front yard of her Burlington, Ont. home on Tuesday. The sign is part of local campaign signifying acceptance for everyone.
Two nights later, the sign was gone.
“I was disappointed, angry and upset,” Parkinson tells CTV News Toronto in an interview Friday.
The sign was stolen from her yard. A security camera positioned on her front porch shows a suspect pull up in a car. A passenger gets out, looks around then grabs the sign and takes off.
“It really hits home personally because one of my children is gay. This has been a 10 year thing with schools, jobs, and now neighbours. I just think hate in general. If you have hate for one type of person, it is bigger than that,” she said.
Her 26-year-old son Tanner say he’s upset and disappointed by the incident.
“It’s kind of like something I don’t want to think about everyday and then this. It feels like a slap in the face,” he explained.
The Pride signs are part of campaign organized by local resident Nicole Boyd. It was her response to a recent decision by the Halton Catholic School Board not to raise the Pride flag at its schools in June.
“It seems targeted. It is disappointing and it is upsetting for so many people in this neighbourhood and beyond,” Boyd tells CTV News Toronto.
Parkinson has filed a report with Halton Regional Police and investigators are reviewing the security video.
It is believed that numerous signs were taken on the same night in the neighbourhood.
In a statement, Halton Regional Police tell CTV News, “Hate and division have no place in Halton and we are committed to fully investigating these incidents and identifying the individuals responsible.”
Parkinson says she has received support from neighbours and even strangers who have learned about this story on social media.
A new replacement Pride sign arrived today and is back on her front yard. Anyone with information about this incident is asked to call Halton Regional Police or crime stoppers.
