A young man has been charged in Canada over a disturbing video that showed him verbally abusing, threatening and assaulting an elderly Sikh man in a hate-motivated incident in Woodstock, Ontario.Woodstock Police say the incident happened around 11:35 a.m. Wednesday on Knights Lane near Turtle Island School. The elderly man was walking on the sidewalk when a young man came near him.A police release said, “Investigation revealed that a youth made an unprovoked attack on an elderly man walking on the footpath. The youth targeted the victim on the basis of his ethnicity while using racial slurs and obscenities.”Video circulating online, which police confirm is part of the investigation, shows the young man repeatedly shouting racist abuse, including, “What are you doing in my country?” He can also be heard repeatedly using the N-word, pushing the man and saying, “You don’t belong here, get that guy out of my country,” “I’ll beat that guy to death,” and “I’ll kill you (N-word).” The young man is also seen making fun of the man’s pronunciation.The victim was identified as Shingara Singh and told OMNI News that he was on his way to the Gurudwara when the incident occurred. Despite the ordeal, he said his message is one of peace and patience.He said, “It is our responsibility to follow the rules of the country we live in. We have been told here that we cannot raise our hands to fight, unless there is a serious situation, we have to be patient.”Police say the victim is not injured. He said that after the attack, the youth jumped a fence onto school property before leaving the area. He was later arrested and charged with making threats to kill or cause bodily harm and criminal harassment, threatening conduct.Woodstock Police Constable Preetpal Thind said the incident has deeply affected the community. “It’s a very difficult moment for the victim as well as the community to witness something like this,” he told OMNI News.The World Sikh Organization of Canada also condemned the attack.“We are deeply concerned by a video circulating online showing an elderly Sikh man being harassed in Woodstock, Ontario. It is unacceptable,” the organization said.Their recent national report found that more than 80 percent of Sikh respondents believe discrimination and hatred against Sikhs has increased over the past five years, with verbal harassment being the most common form of abuse. A separate report from the Institute for Strategic Dialogue also noted an increase in anti-South Asian hate speech in Canada, raising concerns about the safety of visible minority communities and international students.
