Pickering City Council is moving all its meeting to online electronic formats.
“In light of these escalating incidents and growing concerns for the safety of well-being of Council, staff, and residents, the City of Pickering has made the decision to move all official meetings to a virtual format starting in January of 2025,” Pickering Mayor Kevin Ashe stated in a video released on December 30.
“This decision was not taken lightly but the threats to our safety demand action. The business of our City must and will continue. We will not expose ourselves to these external actors nor allow the to disrupt our work any longer.”
The 13-minute video reveals many of the threats of violence being sent to the Mayor, members of the Council, and City staff.
It is deeply disturbing, and includes actual voice mail recordings left by various individuals threatening Pickering’s Mayor, council, staff, and their families.
[Warning: the recordings are deeply disturbing.]
Robinson has appeared as a regular guest on Kevin J. Johnston‘s extremist show. Johnston was convicted for hate speech in 2019. He says he is now living in Costa Rica.
During Robinson’s appearances with Johnston, he has referred to Pickering’s Mayor and councillors as “pedophiles,” facists and Nazis. He published their personal phone numbers.
Johnston openly discusses assaulting and injuring members of Pickering Council and staff.
An associate of Johnston, Ed Jammisek, who appears in Johnston’s videos and laughs as the threats were made, showed up at the December 16 Pickering Council meeting.
Mayor Ashe states these appearances have resulted in serious threats being made. [The threats are included in the YouTube video.]
During the past two years, far-right groups have shown up to Pickering meetings, distributed literature in the community, and these activities continue to increase.
Pickering Council began hiring paid-duty police officers for security.
Councillor Robinson has field for judicial review of the finding of Pickering’s Integrity Commissioner that her actions violate the Council Code of Conduct.