Calgary Little Free Library plastered with ‘white supremacy language’: police

Calgary police say a Little Free Library in the city’s southwest has been defaced with “white supremacy language” and stickers.

The first instance at the library in the area of Cedarille Drive and Cedarille Way was on April 10, when after the incident was spotted, the owners removed the stickers and told police the incident was an isolated one.

However, on April 15, the owners found their library vandalized with the same “white supremacy” stickers, along with “derogatory” terms written on the library.

A third instance on Thursday between 3 p.m. and 5 p.m. saw the owner’s library vandalized with more “derogatory terms,” along with “white supremacy language.”

Investigators believe the incident was “specifically” targeted.

“Hate-motivated vandalism, especially on private property, has a significant impact on both the victims and the community as a whole,” said Const. Matt Messenger of the Calgary Police Service Hate Crime Prevention Unit. “Nobody should have to tolerate or be subjected to hate.”

We are investigating a string of hate-motivated vandalism incidents that occurred in the southwest community of Cedarbrae last week.https://t.co/eYWz99693r pic.twitter.com/J1x7iFQvVz

— Calgary Police (@CalgaryPolice) April 21, 2023

Reverand Dr. Kayko Driedger Hesslein, a lifelong Calgarian, says the city has always supported marginalized communities but was “disgusted” by what she saw.

“We are trying to create a safe space in our community to make it welcoming for all people, and I am disgusted that someone is going to come along and put this graffiti on, especially where kids go by every day to get to school,” she said.

She says the stickers also included anti-trans rhetoric.

In addition, Hesslein says the vandalism was an “attack on marginalized communities and, frankly, an attack on this community as a whole.”

“We’ve got security, and we’re hoping … somebody will see something and report this person, and they’ll be charged with the crimes.”

Hesslein says the experience wasn’t scary, but she and her family are upset and “angry” over the incident.

“The library is our private property that we have out for people to trade books, which we think is a wonderful thing for the community. And for someone to vandalize that, it’s immature, it’s petty, it’s rude. It’s not what we’re used to in this community,” she said.

The family inherited the library from their neighbours in 2022, and she says they were happy to help the community.

“People drop off books, people take books. Sometimes they leave and take DVDs, and I have seen a lot of people actually making use of it, and so, we’re very proud to share it,” she said.

“We like to have books in there that represent marginalized communities. I don’t know if the person who vandalized this was upset by that. But we consider it part of creating a safe and welcoming environment.”

A photo shows markings that were scratched off a Little Free Library in southwest Calgary on Friday, April 21, 2023. (Tiffany Goodwein, CityNews image)

The Calgary Police Service (CPS) wants to remind people to immediately report acts of vandalism or graffiti so the incidents can receive a proper investigation.

“Vandalism is more than a property offence. It often has a lasting emotional impact on people whose homes and properties are damaged, especially if the vandalism indicates that victims have been intentionally targeted due to a personal characteristic or trait,” a statement from police reads.

“Hate-motivated crimes are recognizable crimes, like assault, theft, vandalism or any other crime, where the offender was motivated by bias, prejudice or hate that is based on one of nine personal characteristics of the victim.”

Officers say evidence of a hate crime is considered in the courts after someone is found guilty of the connected crime.

In those instances, if the judge decides — during sentencing — that it was indeed a hate crime, it is considered an aggravating factor that can “add to the convicted person’s sentence.”

No arrests have been made.

Police ask anyone with information about this incident to call them at 403-266-1234 or leave a tip anonymously through Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477.