A London man facing charges following a disturbance at a Pride celebration in the city’s Old South neighbourhood says he’s not homophobic.
Richard Sillers, 37, is charged with possessing a weapon for a dangerous purpose and causing a disturbance after police were called to a “physical altercation” at the inaugural Wortley Village Pride celebration about 2:15 p.m. Saturday, police said. Nobody was hurt.
One witness recounted seeing people in pickup trucks descend on the event, hurling homophobic slurs at those in attendance.
“They can run the narrative that I’m somehow homophobic or racist, but that’s not the story,” Sillers said in a brief interview Tuesday.
Sillers declined to go into detail about the events that led to charges against him, but he disputed details of the confrontation provided by witnesses and accusations that have surfaced on social media.
“There’s a certain portion of reality and there’s a certain portion of assumption on there,” he said, noting he has a relative who identifies as LGBTQ.
The London police hate crimes unit is probing the case, spokesperson Const. Kyrsten Howell-Harries said.
“If there’s anyone with video, photos or who witnessed the incident, please . . . contact police,” she added.
Anyone with information about the incident is asked to call (519) 661-5670.
There’s no specific charge for hate crimes – offences committed against a person or property motivated by hate, bias or prejudice based on real or perceived factors – but Crown attorneys can prosecute incidents as hate crimes, a factor considered in sentencing.
The Old South incident prompted the city’s top cop to assure the public there would be a large police presence at this weekend’s London Pride Festival and parade and acts of intolerance or bias won’t be tolerated.
“Our community is rich with diversity, and every individual has a right to feel safe on our streets, and in our neighbourhoods,” Chief Steve Williams said in a release Monday.
Sillers, who is to appear in court Aug. 25, was released from custody on an undertaking requiring him to stay away from Wortley Road, according to court documents.
He’s accused of causing a disturbance by “shouting” and possessing a “blunt object,” the documents say.
Sillers, a small business owner, said he’s anticipating financial fallout from the charges and news coverage of his case.
“There’s that worry, but it doesn’t matter to me,” he said. “. . . I’m going to lose business – that’s for sure.”
Police didn’t initially identify Sillers when charges against him were announced Sunday, citing the ongoing investigation, but named him Tuesday.
Sillers said he’s concerned photos of his family, including his young daughter, have been posted on social media following the weekend incident.
“I don’t think that’s right. They’ve got pictures of my daughter in the back of my truck all over social media,” he said, questioning why he’d bring his daughter to a planned confrontation.
London photographer Jason Plant, who witnessed the confrontation, shared photos with The Free Press showing a man being arrested beside a white pickup while a woman in a pink shirt argues with a group of people attending the Pride event. The man wears a shirt with the words A lion does not concern itself with the opinion of sheep.
Other photos show the woman raising her middle finger at the group, some of whom are taking photos or videos on their phones, and a police officer speaking with a different man and woman across the street from the park where the Pride event was held.
According to a London police report released in May, there were 83 alleged hate crimes in London last year – an all-time high – compared to 74 in the previous two years combined.
London’s police services board passed a motion last month requesting police release a demographic breakdown of individuals charged with hate-and bias-motivated crimes.
dcarruthers@postmedia.com
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