Image: Twitter/TikTok, used with permission / Abbotsford Police Department officers escort school board trustees and SD34 executive personnel Tuesday night, Sept. 26 after vocal protesters shut down the school board meeting. Abbotsford Police Department spokesperson Constable Art Stele confirmed that police responded. No arrests were made, and AbbyPD members assisted with traffic control to ensure the safety of both pedestrians and motorists in the area.

By Mike Vanden Bosch

Abbotsford Police Department

Abbotsford Police escort Abbotsford school board trustees following protests at meeting

Sep 28, 2023 | 8:54 AM

ABBOTSFORD — An estimated 300 people, possibly more, turned out for what appeared to be a boisterous protest at an Abbotsford School District board meeting Tuesday night, prompting a response from the Abbotsford Police Department.

Video circulating online shows Abbotsford PD officers forming a line of protection outside a building as members of the Abbotsford Board of Education and its administrative team leave a building. Video footage also shows chants from protesters standing on a street, urging school officials to “leave our kids alone” repeatedly Tuesday night.

There were at least five uniformed police officers standing among the demonstrators, according to the video footage.

Image: Twitter/TikTok, used with permission / An AbbyPD officer stands among a crowd of protesters Tuesday night near Tims Street.

Abbotsford Police Department Constable Art Stele confirmed that police attended a protest Tuesday night to keep the peace.

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“Members noted a protest around Justice Way and Tims Street area,” said Cst. Stele, media relations spokesperson for AbbyPD. “Attendance was estimated at about 300 persons throughout the event. No arrests were made, and members assisted with traffic control to ensure the safety of both pedestrians and motorists in the area.”

Tracey Begg, a Fraser Valley resident who watched the proceedings unfold Tuesday night, said people who attended the school board meeting got louder and louder. School board officials tried to power through the meeting but were forced to adjourn the meeting due to the vocal presence of demonstrators.

The protest follows last week’s demonstration estimated at between 600 and 1,000 people on Wednesday, Sept. 20 to coincide with the “1MillionMarch4Children” event in Abbotsford.

Abbotsford School District Superintendent Sean Nosek issued a statement about last week’s march in Abbotsford.

“We are committed to providing safe, inclusive and caring spaces where students can learn and grow without fear of prejudice or bias,” Nosek wrote in his letter. “As you may be aware, there are demonstrations scheduled to take place in the Lower Mainland this week which have fostered inflammatory, transphobic, and hateful behaviours against members of 2SLGBTQ+ communities.”

Subsequent protests in Abbotsford appear to have followed the primary march on Sept. 20. Demonstrators stood outside Abbotsford City Hall on Friday, Sept. 22, and there was another protest of sexual orientation and gender identity curriculum policy in BC public schools on Wednesday night, Sept. 27 outside Abbotsford City Hall. Images on social media show several protesters holding signs, along with vociferously repeating chants that urged the government to leave “our kids alone.”

There is an apparent meeting between SD34 (Abbotsford) trustees and parents tonight (Thursday, Sept. 28) at 7 p.m. at 2790 Tims Street.