RICHMOND, BC — Teresa Wat, BC Conservative MLA for Richmond–Bridgeport and Shadow Minister for Anti-Racism Strategy, is criticizing the BC NDP government for failing to properly promote its anti-racism hotline, the Racist Incident Helpline. She says that as a result, many British Columbians are unaware the service even exists, making it ineffective and a missed opportunity to support vulnerable communities.
“Setting up the hotline was the right move, but the real issue is that the government did nothing to promote it,” said Wat. “If people don’t know the hotline exists, how can they be expected to use it? For those in need, it’s effectively useless.”
Wat, along with several community leaders, first called for the creation of such a hotline in 2021, as anti-Asian hate incidents surged during the pandemic. However, the government did not launch the hotline until May 2024. To date, only 807 calls have been reported.
“Given the province’s population and the serious extent of racism in our communities, this number clearly shows a lack of outreach,” Wat said. “The hotline hasn’t been promoted properly or reached deeply into the communities where it’s needed. Many victims don’t even know it exists, nor that they can seek help. As a former Minister of Multiculturalism, I firmly believe this hotline is not only a critical support service, but also a tool to help government gather data that can shape real policy change. Without proper promotion, however, it becomes a meaningless gesture.”
Wat added that anti-racism organizations that have spoken with her expressed similar concerns, noting their disappointment at the government’s lack of meaningful action and its failure to collaborate effectively with communities.
“Racism doesn’t just go away on its own,” Wat emphasized. “The government must take the issue seriously. Creating the hotline was only the beginning—what’s needed now is multilingual outreach, genuine community engagement, and investment in training frontline staff to handle calls with cultural understanding and professionalism.”
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Media contact:
Ryan Painter, Communications Officer
Conservative Caucus Communications
ryan.painter@leg.bc.ca
1-672-922-1766