Protestors chant 'Brodie, go home,' drum loudly outside Sorrento OneBC Town Hall event

Protestors say 'go home'

Photo: Luc Rempel

Around 75 protestors showed up at the One BC Town Hall in Sorrento hosted by MLA Dallas Brodie.

A large group of protesters gathered outside Sorrento Memorial Hall to protest the OneBC Town Hall event being held by MLA Dallas Brodie on Tuesday, but there didn't appear to be any major clashes between those at the rally and event attendees.

A crowd of about 75 people showed up to protest the event at the Sorrento Memorial Hall at around 6:30 p.m. Tuesday night. Protesters held signs with many different slogans, including one that read “we stand with survivors and their families.”

Over 200 people came out to attend the OneBC event, which reached capacity in the hall. Event security turned away anyone who did not register online ahead of the event.

Chase RCMP had a presence at the event, with two officers staying at the location for the duration of the protest.

Brodie, who represents Vancouver-Quilchena, started the OneBC political party after she was forced out of the BC Conservatives for comments she made about residential schools.

OneBC is no longer officially recognized by the B.C. Legislature as Brodie is the only elected member of the party.

The protest was presented as a decentralized affair with no organization or group claiming to be in charge of the event. One man simply said, “I told my friends about it.”

A handful of protesters had bandanas covering their faces along with hats and gloves, but most attending did not.

First Nations band members from Neskonlith, Adams Lake Indian Band and Skwlax te Secwepemc were at the rally with drummers and singing.

Several protesters had Secwepemc flags, and some were wearing orange shirts to recognize children killed or abused in the residential school system.

Once the event began, protesters gathered at the entrance of the hall to chant and drum in the hopes of drowning out the event. Protestors began chants of “lies, lies, lies,” and “Brodie, go home.”

Event security and other men who appeared to be event attendees stood guard at the doors of the hall. Some protesters who had managed to enter the hall were ejected peacefully shortly after the event began.

A sign was taped to the door instructing anyone else hoping to attend the town hall to “check the livestream.”

Protesters remained at the hall until about 7:45 p.m., when the end of the rally was announced.

A First Nations protest leader who declined to be identified thanked “the allies” and all the band members that came out to the protest.

Chase RCMP officers on the scene declined to make an official statement about the event but told Castanet it was “pretty peaceful on both sides.”

Another OneBC Town Hall event, planned for Creston on Feb. 12, is without a venue after a booking at the Creston and District Community Complex was cancelled.

*This story has been updated to reflect more accurate crowd sizes related to the event.

Photo: OneBC social media

A picture of attendees inside Sorrento Memorial Hall during the OneBC Town Hall led by MLA Dallas Brodie