Donna Upson

Donna Marie Upson (born 1978) is a Canadian white supremacist[1] who ran for the office of mayor of Ottawa, Ontario, Canada in the 2003 municipal election.

Donna Upson
Born1977 or 1978 (age 45–46)

In July 2000, Upson, known within the Ku Klux Klan (KKK) as "Baby Hitler", with several previous convictions for hate-related offences, was sentenced to two years in prison for threatening the pastor of a predominantly black Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, congregation.[2][3] The judge stated that Upson had come to Nova Scotia on a mission to rid churches of blacks, and she was described as a "card-carrying member of the KKK, Aryan Nations, and the Nationalist Party".[4]

She appealed her three convictions, and, in May 2001, the Nova Scotia Court of Appeal reversed two of them, and she was then released from prison. She was re-arrested a few days later, on an Amherst warrant, to face assault charges stemming from incidents while she was incarcerated; she was then released on bail.[5]

In July 2003, there was wide coverage in Canadian media that Upson had filed as a candidate for mayor of Ottawa. During the campaign, she received contributions from the KKK,[6] and she voiced support for racial segregation. She had also set up a Canadian branch of the National Socialist Movement.[1] A week after the original coverage, it was reported that there were three outstanding arrest warrants for Upson from Nova Scotia, two for assault and one for failure to appear.[7]

Arrested in October for breach of probation,[8] she remained on the ballot for the November 10, 2003 election and finished sixth, with 1,312 votes (0.71%),[9] considered a "startling number".[10]

References
  1. "Ontario Municipal Elections 2003". Canada.com. Archived from the original on 21 June 2008. Retrieved 11 June 2008.
  2. "Woman sentenced for hate crimes". CBC News. 5 July 2000. Retrieved 2 September 2021.
  3. "Hate crime conviction should send wake-up call". CBC News. 4 July 2000. Retrieved 2 September 2021.
  4. Davene Jeffrey, "Racist Jailed for Threats Against Black Clergy Leader", The Halifax Herald, Limited, Thursday, July 6, 2000, copy at
  5. "'Baby Hitler' granted bail". CBC News. 1 June 2001. Retrieved 2 September 2021.
  6. "Candidate for mayor supported by Klan". CBC News. 9 July 2003. Archived from the original on 27 July 2003. Retrieved 15 June 2008.
  7. Rupert, Jake (19 July 2003). "Mayoral candidate wanted by police". The Ottawa Citizen. p. D1. Retrieved 2 September 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
  8. Corbett, Ron (3 November 2003). "White supremacist remains on ballot, despite possible move". The Ottawa Citizen. p. D5. Retrieved 2 September 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
  9. "2003 municipal elections results". ottawa.ca. Archived from the original on 19 January 2017. Retrieved 3 September 2021.
  10. Lightstone, Michael (14 November 2003). "Startling number vote for white supremacist". The Chronicle Herald.
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