Nenshi says in video that technology is being used by opponents of diversity

Naheed Nenshi, 36th mayor of the City of Calgary, Alberta, wearing a Calgary Flames jersey. Photo taken October 10, 2010 (8 days before his election). (Photo By Naheed_Nenshi.jpg: 5of7derivative work: Bdell555 (talk) – Naheed_Nenshi.jpg, CC BY-SA 2.0)

CALGARY — A video posted to social media last week that showed Calgary’s mayor accuse some of his challengers’ supporters of using technology to get people who might be “racists or haters” out to vote has been pulled down.

But in a statement released by Naheed Nenshi’s re-election campaign chair on Monday, Chima Nkemdirim says there has been “a remarkable rise in racist and hateful comments” online throughout the campaign.

Nkemdirim also points out that Nenshi, who became what was believed to be the first Muslim mayor of a major Canadian city in 2010, has spoken out against such comments for months.

Nkemdirim says the hateful comments “have been magnified by automated bots and anonymous accounts online,” but he notes that all the candidates are unified in condemning such activities.

Mayoral candidate Bill Smith says Nenshi is worried about his polling numbers and is “reaching out for whatever he can get to help him go forward.”

Nenshi said in the video that the election on Oct. 16 would be tight, and he urged supporters to vote in greater numbers than people who reject a city that is “inclusive of everyone.”