Members of the Guelph Seventh-Day Adventist Church were shocked last Wednesday when they discovered graffiti and a hateful message spray-painted on the church.
Pastor Selburn Fray says he was horrified when he climbed up on the roof and read the racial slur.
The message across the roof reads, “I hate n*****s and god i am Black Jesus.”
“We’ve been here for years, worshipping in this building and nothing like this has ever happened,” says Fray.
He climbed down from the roof and went straight to the police station to file a report.
Fray says that despite the hateful words, anger isn’t the message the vandals’ actions have left him with.
“We are forgiving because we are a church and we’re here for the community,” he says. “Religion knows no race, therefore we are a people who are welcoming to whoever wants to worship.”
Carol Weinstein has been attending the church since 1986 and says this is the first time she’s ever seen anything like this.
“I’m shocked,” says Weinstein. “At the same time, in light of what has been going on in the world, I think it was inevitable that it would come to Canada and it’s very saddening.”
Guelph Police are investigating the vandalism and have categorized it as a hate crime.
With reporting by Nicole Lampa
