Editor’s note: This story contains images that may be offensive to some readers.
For the second time in a month, a Langley family is appealing for help catching the person who spraypainted anti-Ukraine messages on their property.
Kiersten Bisgaard’s home in the Willoughby neighbourhood displays a blue and yellow Ukrainian flag, in support of peace for the war-ravaged country which has been fighting a Russian invasion for more than a year.
The first time the home was vandalized, the sidewalk outside her front gate was spraypainted sometime on Thursday, March 9, she told Daily Hive.
The vandals drew a crude swastika on the gate and wrote “Ukrain = Nazi” on the sidewalk.
However, according to Bisgaard’s social media, it happened again sometime between Friday and Saturday.
“They hit our gate again, this time with a cross. However, the majority of the graffiti is on the sidewalk with messages like “ukrain[sic] = Nazi,” “Jesus is king,” “ukrain[sic] are the devil,” “the Nazi die,” etc.,” she wrote over the weekend.
“Most of these messages are between our complex and the next where it is mostly trees, including up the trail behind Serenity and up through Nature’s Walk. There is also a message sprayed on the pathway in the southeast corner of Richard Bullpit Elementary. This person is obviously a coward,” she said.
As a result of the now second incident, she says they have to install security cameras and are encouraging anyone who sees suspicious activity to call the police.
“We have lived here for eight years and have never experienced anything at all like this. We are walking our dogs daily and frequently meet friendly people in our multi-cultural neighbourhood,” Bisgaard said in an earlier interview with Daily Hive.
She was “surprised, but not shocked” by the incident.
“We’ve seen far too many similar acts of racist vandalism increasing in the last few years,” said Bisgaard. “I never thought we would be the target of something like this.”
However, she adds that the community support and offers to help clean up have been overwhelming and vows to keep the flags flying despite the ongoing graffiti incidents.