Vancouver Sun Apologizes for Opinion Piece Calling Ethnic Diversity Harmful
Simran Singh, DH News, September 9, 2019
The Vancouver Sun has issued an apology for publishing an opinion piece from Calgary-based author, Mark Hecht, who argued that ethnic diversity is harmful to Canada.
In his article, Hecht, an instructor at Mount Royal University in Calgary, writes that while “many western nations assumed that ethnic and cultural diversity through immigration would be beneficial” many have “ended up with a lot of arrogant people living in their countries with no intention of letting go of their previous cultures, animosities, preferences, and pretensions.”
Within hours of the story being published online, the Vancouver Sun received an outpour of backlash and criticism on social media from the public and from many of its own writers, who condemned the piece for being racist.
The story was later deleted from the Vancouver Sun and the Vancouver Province’s websites but the piece was still published in Saturday’s edition of the paper.
Vancouver Sun editor-in-chief, Harold Munro, took to Twitter on Friday evening to apologize, explaining that the piece was “published before [he] had a chance to read it.”
Munro’s official apology was published on September 7.
“An opinion article by Mark Hecht published in Saturday’s Weekend Review section and online contained views that do not meet the journalistic standards of The Vancouver Sun and do not represent the views of our editors and journalists,” stated Munro, adding that the publication is “committed to promoting and celebrating diversity, tolerance and inclusion. Our vibrant community and nation are built on these important pillars.”
“We apologize for the publication of the article. We are reviewing our local workflow and editorial processes to ensure greater oversight and accountability so that this does not happen again”
“We value the trust that our community and readers place in The Vancouver Sun and we are committed to continuing, every day, to earn that trust.”
The Vancouver Sun has also published a rebuttal piece to Hecht’s work in Monday’s newspaper.
[Editor’s Note: Mark Hecht’s piece “Truth Requires Less Diversity,Canada” is available on his website here.]
