Racist video sparks outrage, Calgary Coun. Dan McLean has ‘zero recollection’ of involvement

Videos, in which a group of men is heard making racist, sexist, and hateful comments, have some people calling for a Calgary councillor to be reprimanded.

The men in the videos are speaking in an accent, mocking Indigenous names and making comments of a sexual nature.

One of the videos features the voice of a man who is off-screen. While he says he “has zero recollection” of any involvement, many on social media have suggested the man sounds like Calgary Ward 13 councillor Dan McLean.

“Dan McLean is my council person and I am horrified by these videos. An apology is not enough. He must step down,” one social media user wrote.

“He needs to be fired. An apology will not do without accountability or consequence. There is no room for racists here and I implore our honourable mayor [Jyoti Gondek] to take swift action,” another post reads.

Two of the men in the video have been identified as former Alberta Justice Minister Jonathan Denis, who served under Premier Jim Prentice, and Calgary businessman and political activist Craig Chandler.

A photo shared online, taken in what appears to be the same location, shows McLean sitting with the two men.

“All I can say is that I saw the video, and can honestly say I have zero recollection of that event,” McLean said in an email to CityNews.

Ward 11 Coun. Kourtney Penner is among many online urging McLean to apologize.

“I have seen the deeply offensive videos of my colleague circulating,” she tweeted. “When the video was taken or released is of no consequence to the steps he must take. In a time where reconciliation is at the forefront of our work, I would encourage my colleague to apologize widely.”

“It’s deeply disappointing. Whether this video was shot pre-campaign or pre-election, the path toward truth and reconciliation isn’t anything new and we know that imitating anyone of any culture is unacceptable behaviour,” Penner told reporters later Thursday.

“I’m going to give councillor McLean at this time the benefit of the doubt that he is going to do the right thing. And once I see more then I will know what my next steps are,” she added.

Penner says all councillors have received Indigenous training and there is an Indigenous-relations officer who can work with councillors at any time.

McLean posted a video and written statement to his Facebook page Friday seemingly addressing the video.

In a statement released on Twitter, Ward 9 councillor Gian-Carlo Carra says he doesn’t view McLean’s video as an apology.

While McLean is being criticized, this is not the first controversy the other two men have found themselves embroiled in.

Chandler is alleged to have made prank calls on behalf of Alberta Premier Danielle Smith during her leadership campaign, while Denis was found in contempt earlier this year for threatening to sue a plaintiff in the middle of her testimony in a civil trial.

Denis has also been criticized for remarks he made in a previous video, for which he has apologized.

Guardian Law, the firm of which Jonathan Denis is a member, sent CityNews the following statement: “A member of our firm has been targeted with online harassment. We now have evidence that these videos are being doctored. The police are engaged.”

-With files from Logan Stein, Bailey Nitti, and Joey Chini