Group that supports LGBTQ2S+ community in North Bay vandalized
A group of motorcycle enthusiasts in North Bay were victims of vandalism this week because of their support for the LGBTQ2S+ community.
Lorieann Whittaker and the rest of the North Star Guardians club are disheartened after a member’s pickup truck was spray-painted Wednesday night with anti-LGBTQ2S+ rhetoric.
"This is happening in our backyard and a lot of people have been turning a blind eye," Whittaker said.
"I was upset at first and angry, but that just lit a fire to educate."
The interior and exterior of the truck belonging to club member Jimmy LaPorte was tagged Wednesday night between 11 p.m. and midnight on Sherryl Crescent.
Some of the vandalism is directly aimed at the group's support of the LGBTQ2S+ community. The front seats were also slashed with a knife that was left behind.
Phoenix Whittaker is a general queer community worker who works with LGBTQ2S+ children through the group who knows all too well about the effect that hate directed toward LGBTQ2S+ individuals can have.
"As someone in the queer community of northern Ontario, I was quite put back by it," Phoenix Whittaker said.
“But to say I was shocked, well I’m really not. It’s still sad this is happening in 2022.”
The vandalism comes a month after the group publicly supported OutLoud North Bay when the LGBTQ2S+ youth space was flooded with online hate and death threats for wanting to host a youth drag show.
Club members guarded the safe space and held a fundraiser for the organization.
"We are a very active advocate for OutLoud and we are a very active group for the queer community," said Lorieann Whittaker.
"We accept everyone and anyone."
According to Statistics Canada, the queer community is two times more likely to suffer discrimination than other groups.
North Star Guardians help disadvantaged, bullied and abused children and their families through support, mentorship and liaison.
North Bay police confirm an investigation is currently open to determine whether there's a link to last month's OutLoud threats.
"At this point, the investigation will tell us that," said Insp. Jeff Warner.
"There is an investigation underway into the offence of mischief. Depending on the value of damage, it could be mischief over $5,000."
Police are encouraging anyone with home or dash camera video footage to contact them or Crime Stoppers.
As for North Star Guardians, the club said an act of vandalism won’t stop their support of youth in the community
"We won’t stop what we’re doing. We have a mission and our mission includes standing with the queer community," said Lorieann Whittaker.
Correction
The name of the street the vandalism happen on has been corrected. It is Sherryl Crescent, not Cheryl Street as orginally published.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
For the first time in report's history, Canada's air quality worse than U.S.
Air quality in Canada is now worse than in the U.S., according to the 6th Annual World Air Quality Report. Of the 15 most polluted cities in the two countries, 14 were in Canada.
A newspaper says video of Prince William and Kate should halt royal rumour mill. That's a tall order
Prince William and his wife Catherine have been filmed at a farm shop near their Windsor home, The Sun newspaper reported -- the first footage of Kate since she had abdominal surgery for an unspecified condition two months ago.
WATCH LIVE As former prime minister Mulroney lies in state, public tributes in Ottawa begin
Members of the public who wish to pay tribute to Brian Mulroney can visit his casket in Ottawa starting this afternoon.
BREAKING Roy McMurtry, former Ontario attorney general, dies at 91
CTV News has confirmed that former Ontario attorney general Roy McMurtry has died.
Hertz CEO out following electric car 'horror show'
The company, which announced in January it was selling 20,000 of the electric vehicles in its fleet, or about a third of the EVs it owned, is now replacing the CEO who helped build up that fleet, giving it the company’s fifth boss in just four years.
'You ask for your money, they disappear': Ontario man loses $17K to AI crypto scam
A Toronto man is spreading the word of a cryptocurrency scam that lures victims using AI-generated news sites after he lost $17,000 in investments.
Images taken deep inside melted Fukushima reactor show damage, but leave many questions unanswered
Images taken by miniature drones from deep inside a badly damaged reactor at the Fukushima nuclear plant show displaced control equipment and misshapen materials but leave many questions unanswered, underscoring the daunting task of decommissioning the plant.
DEVELOPING Canada's annual inflation rate ticked down to 2.8 per cent in February, defying expectations
Statistics Canada says the annual inflation rate edged down to 2.8 per cent in February.
High thoughts: The habits of Canadian cannabis users are revealed in a new StatCan report
Statistics Canada has conducted a series of surveys to measure the impacts of legalized cannabis since the Cannabis Act took effect in 2018. The latest one, the 2023 National Cannabis Survey, sheds light on users' preferences and habits last year.