Anti-immigration Pamphlets Enrage Canadian Sikh Community

Anti-immigration flyers dumped on Canadian doorsteps have caused an uproar in the Sikh community who slammed them as racist propaganda.

Leaflets emblazoned with the headline, "The changing face of Brampton", have been distributed in the Southern Ontario city of Brampton by the Immigration Watch of Canada, a group that opposes mass immigration.

They feature two before-and-now pictures: a black-and-white photo of a group of white Caucasians and a colourful picture of a group of angry Sikhs, following by the question "Is this what you want? Let's Make Immigration Work For The Interests Of Canadians Again!"

Dan Murray, spokesperson and co-founder of Immigration Watch, rejected the accusation of racism and said they chose Sikhs because they account for the "majority of population in Brampton".

"The purpose of the flyer is to say there is a cultural limit to the number of people any part of Canada could accept," he told Toronto Star.

But Sikhs took to social media to voice their anger to the flyer:

Gurmeet Singh, an activist in Brampton's Sikh community, told the Star that residents were furious about the flyer and pointed out that the photo of Sikh men was taken at a protest in India.

"This is just not acceptable in the city of Brampton, in Canada," he said.

Ontario's premier Kathleen Wynne also slammed the flyer:

Canada's Minister of State for Multiculturalism Tim S. Uppal tweeted:

Peel Regional Police are investigating allegations of racism related to the pamphlet.