An outraged Quebec resident is speaking out after Nazi and antisemitic graffiti on a bridge has not been cleaned up weeks after she reported it to authorities.
The graffiti was discovered by the kayaker on a bridge in Wakefield, Quebec two weeks ago.
It is not clear how long the graffiti, including swastikas, an SS symbol and the phrase “Zig Heil (sic)” has been on the bridge, which is covered with multiple layers of graffiti. But the Nazi graffiti appears to have been spray painted on top of older markings, which would imply it is relatively recent.
Nina Guerra told CBC News that she was kayaking on the Gatineau River on August 6 with a friend when they discovered the swastika and other Nazi symbols on the bridge in western Quebec.
She said that she immediately contacted local police but the graffiti was still there as of Saturday.
"There are many reasons we are doing this. The first is to find out who is actually responsible for hate crimes, and who is going to take the responsibility for it. The second, is [to find out] who is going to erase this hateful graffiti," she said.
According to local Councillor Claude Giroux, it could take several days to remove the graffiti, and longer if the bridge belongs to the provincial ministry of transportation.
“Now, when a bridge passes over a river in Quebec, in principle it belongs to Ministere des Transports [Ministry of Transportation]. But because it's on a municipal road, it's not clear. I'll clear this up with the administration on Monday," Giroux told Radio-Canada.