Woman warns of harassment by anti-vaxxer

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This article was published 05/02/2022 (1055 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

AN Osborne Village resident is warning her neighbours and commuters to stay vigilant about their safety while downtown after she says she was harassed by an anti-vaxxer on her way home from work at a hospital Friday.

Hayley Jade, 25, told the Free Press she was approached by a man around 4 p.m. while waiting at a bus stop near the Manitoba legislature — the grounds of an ongoing protest of COVID-19 restrictions and public health mandates.

Jade said she took out her earbuds when she realized the man was trying to talk to her, at which point he started rambling and said something along the lines of, “I can’t believe they’re doing it.”

Given their location, she said she interpreted his comments as being anti-protest and gave a vague response about her agreement that the anti-restriction gathering was ridiculous. That “set him off” and he started approaching her, pacing and babbling, she said.

In a series of videos she posted on Instagram, a man starts raising his voice while touting misinformation about the COVID-19 vaccine.

“It doesn’t stop infection. Why? Why risk injuring people? Why risk making our children infertile? Why? Why risk that?” the man says before encouraging the public to read fringe right-wing news outlets and question current mandates.

“He was a couple inches from me, and he wasn’t wearing a mask, which I’m very uncomfortable with,” said Jade, who asked the Free Press to publish only her first and middle names to protect her identity.

Jade said she attempted to ignore the man for the next 10 minutes by putting in her earbuds and calling her partner, but the man boarded her bus and sat near her.

When the southbound Winnipeg Transit bus broke down, she got off and immediately started walking south. She said the man started walking north, which made her question if he got on the bus to follow her.

Jade said she was still shaking and experiencing an adrenaline rush by the time she got home. She then took to social media to share her experience.

“I was very glad that I took off my (work) badge,” she said, adding she already felt targeted because she was a young Métis woman standing alone. “I can only imagine, if he knew I was a health-care worker, how much worse the harassment would’ve been.”

Defend Wpg, a grassroots group created to support downtown residents who feel unsafe during the “Freedom Convoy” protests, is launching a safe walk program in response to community concerns.

Community organizer Omar Kinnarath said anyone interested in either giving or receiving an escort to a bus stop or elsewhere downtown can contact the group.

“Don’t take safety for granted. Don’t underestimate the ideals that these (protesters), who are in our neighbourhood, have,” Jade said. “I don’t know who (this man) is, what he’s capable of, or what his intentions were — if I had given him any sort of reaction, it could’ve ended in a number of ways.”

The 25-year-old did not file a police report. She said she did not have enough information about the man and was skeptical authorities would pursue the matter.

She described the man as Caucasian, in his 30s, roughly six feet tall and lanky. Jade said he was wearing all black with a green high-visibility jacket and tan work boots.

maggie.macintosh@freepress.mb.ca