‘I felt it is challenging the Chinese community and mocking us’: Derogatory graffiti at Markham mall brings up unpleasant memories for resident

City reiterates intolerance of anti-Asian racism in Markham

Yorkregion.com
Feb. 6, 2023
Irene Wong

Stephen Lew was waiting for a traffic signal to turn green after a weekend errand at Markham’s landmark Markville Mall when he noticed some graffiti on the lower wall of the parking area. He decided to quickly pull out his camera to capture it.

“What hit me within moments is that this is targeted to the Chinese community,” said Lew, who is of Chinese descent. “Coincidentally, Lunar New Year (was) just around the corner. This unpleasant eye sore and hateful or derogatory expressions against our community in general bothers me more. I felt it is challenging the Chinese community and mocking us.”

Lew shared the photo of the graffiti on social media, posting, “Being a Chinese living in Canada and, particularly in Markham, enduring some form of racism is part of my life.”

Lew said he endured some form of derogatory comments when he first came to Canada. Comments such as: “Go back to ESL (English as a second language)!” or “Go back to where you came from!”

“I’ve also been called ‘Peking’ in high school. I’ve encountered non-Asians pretending to be speaking in Chinese by uttering gibberish smashed together that sounds like it’s Chinese in a sarcastic way. Even in some of my former work environment within the last 15 years, I’ll hear references of racist comments concealed in a subliminal way.”

Lew said when he saw the derogatory graffiti, all the unpleasant suppressed memories started to surface.

“At that point, other than this graffiti being an eye sore, I felt as if a knife was thrusted into my tormented heart.”

Lew grew up in Markham and grew to love it while calling it home, a city referred to as “one of the fastest growing and culturally diverse municipalities in Canada.”

“For (Markham's) diversity, one does not need to travel far to find great food or elegant merchandise of other cultures,” added Lew. "Diversity keeps us grounded and humble as we experience how people from another culture live.”

While the Markham Economist and Sun did not get a direct response from Mayor Frank Scarpitti concerning the derogatory graffiti at the mall, the City of Markham released a statement on Twitter right after our inquiry stating anti-Asian racism has no place in Markham.

“We are saddened to learn about the anti-Asian graffiti that was recently discovered at Markville Mall,” it read. “We condemn this act and remind the community there is no place for hatred in our city. We’re proud to be a diverse and inclusive community. Markham is home to one of the largest Asian diasporas in Canada. We stand with the Asian community at this time.”

The city emphasized it is taking action against racism, adding Markham has a Diversity Action Plan in place to “make our community work for everyone.”

Markville Mall took prompt action after the photo of the graffiti swept social media. The graffiti was painted over the next day, followed by a deep cleaning without leaving a trace.

A spokesperson from North Strategic, which handles Markville Mall owner Cadillac Fairview’s public relations and media requests, said the company was working with York Regional Police in its investigation.

“As soon as we were notified, we deployed our team to remove the graffiti. Our primary concern is for the safety and security of our customers, tenants and staff, and providing a welcoming environment for our community.”

As for Lew, he said the more he thought about the incident, the more he believed it was not specific to a particular ethnic group, but it was still disturbing.

“These unprovoked expressions are hurtful and only divide society and create animosity.”