The first-time cabinet minister in charge of Ontario’s anti-racism directorate has been branded a “racist” by New Democrat Leader Andrea Horwath for declaring he wore a bulletproof vest while visiting the Jane-Finch area, as Toronto experiences an outbreak of shootings this summer.Community Safety and Corrections Minister Michael Tibollo, a lawyer and rookie MPP for Vaughan-Woodbridge, made the remarks in the Legislature’s daily question period Wednesday in response to an NDP question on whether the new Progressive Conservative government will eliminate carding.“I want to reassure everyone that the focus of this government is to ensure that safety is paramount in all communities. Personally, I went out to Jane and Finch, put on a bulletproof vest and spent 7 o’clock to 1 o’clock in the morning visiting sites that had previously had bullet-ridden people killed in the middle of the night,” Tibollo said.“I’m not a police officer, but what I can tell you is they need skills, they need tools to work with. Our work will be to ensure, working with the communities, that we build trust and that we have those tools provided to them to be able to do their jobs properly.”NDP Leader Andrea Horwath said her entire caucus was “appalled” by Tibollo’s “blatantly racist” statement.“It’s one he should apologize for and withdraw immediately,” said Horwath.“It is absolutely unacceptable to make an insinuation that going into a highly racialized community is going to necessitate the wearing of a bulletproof vest,” she said.Horwath added that “from what we heard today,” the rookie minister “has no credibility whatsoever” to lead the government’s anti-racism efforts.Tibollo later told reporters he donned the vest after it was given to him by Toronto police for the evening ride-along, in which he was joined by Premier Doug Ford.̶ ...
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