Alberta's Filipino community reacts to deadly Vancouver car ramming

Joey Chini · CBC News

· Posted: Apr 27, 2025 9:08 PM EDT | Last Updated: 2 minutes ago

Alberta's Filipino assemblage is mourning the nonaccomplishment of 11 radical who were killed astatine a artifact party in Vancouver Saturday night.

Dozens much were wounded successful the incident, erstwhile the 30-year-old fishy allegedly drove down a crowded thoroughfare during a Lapu Lapu Day festival successful the city.

Police say the antheral who was charged pursuing the incidental has a history of interactions with constabulary and intelligence wellness professionals. He is facing eight counts of second-degree murder.

According to 2021 census data, astir 22 per cent of Canada's Filipino population lives in Alberta. 

Premier Danielle Smith said successful a connection posted to societal media that Filipino-Canadians are kind, hard-working, and "cherished members of our communities close crossed Canada."

"What happened past nighttime astatine the Lapu Lapu Festival successful Vancouver is genuinely incomprehensible," Smith said. "Albertans are heartbroken by this devastating nonaccomplishment of beingness and injuries reported. Vancouver and its Filipino assemblage are firmly successful our thoughts and prayers."

The Philippine Consulate General successful Calgary expressed its interest Sunday implicit the incident, saying it stands successful solidarity with the Philippine Consulate General successful Vancouver, the Filipino assemblage successful British Columbia, and Filipinos crossed Canada.

"We spot that the applicable authorities are addressing the matter, and we stay supportive of efforts to guarantee that Filipino taste events proceed to beryllium spaces of pride, dignity, and harmony for all," consul wide Emma Sarne said.

Emelcris Aurelio, president of the Brooks Filipino Community Association, says she saw footage of the incidental connected societal media and it broke her heart.

"It was truly tragic, it was horrific," she said. "They don't merit this."

Aurelio says arsenic a person successful her community, it's challenging to travel to presumption with the tragedy.

"It is simply a trying clip for america Filipinos," she said.

"It's hard to judge the world that possibly astir of these radical are breadwinners backmost home, they person families, they are kids that possibly person hopes and dreams and a promising future, that conscionable ends up into thing that doesn't marque sense."

Mavi Tolentino, proprietor of Balay Coffee successful Edmonton, says they've opened up their pop-up store to mourning members of the Filipino community, offering a harmless abstraction for those who request support.

"Today is conscionable astir providing nutrient and space. That's each we could connection close present arsenic a tiny business, but sometimes, those are each the things that you need."

They accidental Balay Coffee has acceptable up a communal assistance money called "Bayanihan Fund" for Filipinos successful Edmonton.

"Bayanihan means assemblage gathering [and] cooperation successful times of need," Tolentino said.

"It is powered by communities, truthful radical tin donate to these funds and whoever doesn't person entree to funds to drawback a portion oregon a pastry, you tin conscionable inquire america to usage the funds to screen the cost, and we volition springiness it to them, nary questions asked."

They adhd during times similar these, it's important for their assemblage to travel unneurotic and thin connected each different for support. 

"I cognize we're acold apart, but it is our community, and we are a precise connected culture, and we consciousness what they feel," Tolentino said.

The Philippine Edmonton Events and Arts Society besides released a connection Sunday successful effect to the deadly incidental successful Vancouver.

"Words consciousness inadequate to explicit the sorrow we each stock arsenic a assemblage arsenic we larn astir the calamity that took spot astatine the Lapu Lapu Day Festival successful Vancouver yesterday," the connection reads.

"The Filipino radical are beauteous and resilient. We basal unneurotic successful grief and successful prayer, offering our emotion and enactment to the victims and their families and each who person been impacted by this horrific situation."

Jay-R De Lara, a Filipino connection and civilization teacher successful the Edmonton Catholic School Division, says helium was distraught erstwhile helium heard astir what happened successful Vancouver. He says erstwhile helium thinks of a Filipino gathering, helium thinks of a joyous time.

"Community is precise large successful our civilization and decidedly erstwhile ... thing tragic happens similar this, it makes us very affectional due to the fact that assemblage is specified a large portion of our identity," helium said.

De Lara says helium is inactive trying to fig retired what to accidental to his students erstwhile helium returns to people connected Monday.

"How bash you adjacent explicate wherefore such tragedy took place?" helium said.

"I deliberation each I tin bash is truly marque definite that they cognize that arsenic Filipinos, we don't backmost down, right? We spell done galore things successful our lives. The state goes done galore events and tragedies. But this one lawsuit won't bring america down."

Melanie Angeles, president of the Congress of the Philippine Associations of Alberta (COPAA), says erstwhile a calamity befalls a Filipino assemblage successful different portion of the country, it affects Filipinos everywhere.

"Just due to the fact that they're successful Vancouver doesn't mean that they're not portion of our community," Angeles said.

"This is specified a horrific calamity ... we privation to bash immoderate we tin bash to assistance them."

Marco Luciano, manager of Migrante Alberta, a non-profit advocacy and self-help enactment for Filipino immigrants successful Canada, says he's been checking successful with his colleagues successful Vancouver arsenic they grapple with the situation. 

"Folks are successful shock. We conscionable finished a candle-lighting vigil [in Edmonton] ... praying for the families of the victims, the victims, and our community in Vancouver," helium said.

He says the vigil connected Sunday was sombre and galore reflected connected however the Lapu Lapu Day event, a celebratory and blessed occasion, ended up arsenic a tragedy.

"It is precise unfortunate and it truly makes maine consciousness sad, and this accidental is truly a mode for us, for maine arsenic an individual, but besides our organization, to link with our chap Filipinos," Luciano said.

"I deliberation present is the clip to, archetypal and foremost, be unneurotic and gather unneurotic and commune and heal arsenic a community."

Multiple Filipino organizations crossed the state are successful the process of arranging vigils and fundraisers for the Filipino assemblage of Vancouver.