'Autism isn't a slur, it's a superpower': London politician turns sign vandalism into a positive message
Damaged signs during election campaigns are an unfortunate reality, but one London, Ont. municipal candidate says vandalism to one of his signs went too far.
"When these slurs start being used against an entire community of differently abled people that's when I have to stand up on their behalf,” says London Ward 11 candidate Jeremy McCall.
A marker was used to deface both sides of the sign, including the terms “Jimmy McTard” and “autismaloid.”
McCall's wife, Joy, was actually first to notice the vandalized sign over the weekend, telling CTV News London, "My wife worked overnight on Saturday night and she was on her way home on Sunday morning at 7:00 a.m. when she saw the sign on the side of the road as she drove by. She stopped and turned around and grabbed it."
Image of Ward 11 candidate Jeremy McCall's defaced election sign. McNall is using the hateful act to instead raise awareness for Autism Ontario. (Gerry Dewan/CTV News London)
McCall pushed back with words and deeds, going on social media to say, “Autism isn't a slur, it's a superpower.”
He also made a donation to the London branch of Autism Ontario and encouraged others to do the same.
"We always fight ignorance with education and compassion,” he stresses. “Obviously this is coming from a place of a little bit of hate and some misunderstanding. I think there's an opportunity for us to come together and show the autism community that we do support them."
"Mr. McCall has actually turned this into a positive by encouraging people to donate to Autism Ontario,” says Michael Cnudde, a communications specialist with Autism Ontario. "I think it just emphasizes the need for further education, further acceptance about autism."
McCall acknowledges that some people may have strong opinions about certain candidates or their policies but says defacing signs or disparaging others is no way to deal with those issues.
"This isn't about me but it is about everyone else that this impacts,” he says.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Doctors say capital gains tax changes will jeopardize their retirement. Is that true?
The Canadian Medical Association asserts the Liberals' proposed changes to capital gains taxation will put doctors' retirement savings in jeopardy, but some financial experts insist incorporated professionals are not as doomed as they say they are.
Something in the water? Canadian family latest to spot elusive 'Loch Ness Monster'
For centuries, people have wondered what, if anything, might be lurking beneath the surface of Loch Ness in Scotland. When Canadian couple Parry Malm and Shannon Wiseman visited the Scottish highlands earlier this month with their two children, they didn’t expect to become part of the mystery.
Fair in Ontario, flurries in Labrador: Weather systems make for an erratic spring
It's no secret that spring can be a tumultuous time for Canadian weather, and as an unseasonably mild El Nino winter gives way to summer, there's bound to be a few swings in temperature that seem out of the ordinary. From Ontario to the Atlantic, though, this week is about to feel a little erratic.
What do weight loss drugs mean for a diet industry built on eating less and exercising more?
Recent injected drugs like Wegovy and its predecessor, the diabetes medication Ozempic, are reshaping the health and fitness industries.
He replaced Mickey Mantle. Now baseball's oldest living major leaguer is turning 100
The oldest living former major leaguer, Art Schallock turns 100 on Thursday and is being celebrated in the Bay Area and beyond as the milestone approaches.
What a urologist wants you to know about male infertility
When opposite sex couples are trying and failing to get pregnant, the attention often focuses on the woman. That’s not always the case.
'It was instant karma': Viral video captures failed theft attempt in Nanaimo, B.C.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.
Bank of Canada officials split on when to start cutting interest rates
Members of the Bank of Canada's governing council were split on how long the central bank should wait before it starts cutting interest rates when they met earlier this month.
Quebec nurse had to clean up after husband's death in Montreal hospital
On a night she should have been mourning, a nurse from Quebec's Laurentians region says she was forced to clean up her husband after he died at a hospital in Montreal.