TikToker Rachel Gilmore downplays church arsons

A progressive TikTok personality is drawing backlash after laughing and sipping wine during a now-deleted livestream where she dismissed warnings of rising anti-Christian hate in Canada.

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A progressive TikTok personality is drawing backlash after laughing and sipping wine during a now-deleted livestream where she dismissed warnings of rising anti-Christian hate in Canada as “exaggerated” and “complicated.”

The video of the livestream, which circulated on social media this week, featured activist Rachel Gilmore reacting to Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre’s recent comments about the wave of arsons and vandalism targeting Christian churches across the country.

Poilievre, during a press conference on Monday, said 100 churches have been attacked since 2021 and vowed to crack down on hate-motivated crimes targeting Christian Canadians.

During her livestream, Gilmore challenged the figure and questioned the motives behind the concern.

“I don’t know why all of those churches were burned,” she said. “And it’s also not happening at the rate that people are saying. Like Poilievre said today, it was more than 100. [But] 24 confirmed instances over three years…”

Gilmore went on to describe some church fires as linked to redevelopment or insurance issues, adding that some were already “deconsecrated” and no longer active places of worship.

“It’s complicated,” she said. “Not every single instance of a fire in a church is something you can link back to those feelings of grief and rage.”

The dismissive tone of the video, including sips of wine followed up by casual laughter, sparked criticism online.

Gilmore has since deleted the livestream.

The RCMP has previously confirmed that dozens of churches have been targeted in arson or vandalism since the alleged discovery of unmarked graves near former residential school sites in 2021.

However, no graves have yet been discovered.

Since the unsubstantiated claims, 123 Christian churches have been vandalized, burned to the ground, or desecrated. Despite this, there has been no national inquiry called to address this national crisis.