A video from Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, has sparked widespread outrage and heated online discussions after showing a snow-covered neighborhood littered with piles of garbage bags. Although the video does not specify who is responsible, many on social media were quick to point fingers at Indian international students, fueling a surge of criticism directed at migrants, especially those from India.
A 25-second video, initially uploaded on TikTok and later shared on X (formerly Twitter), captures a man expressing dismay over the condition of his once-charming neighborhood. As the camera pans across the area littered with garbage bags, the man remarks, “This is the neighborhood I grew up in. It used to be a beautiful neighborhood. It used to be a really good place to live.” He describes the sight as “just disgusting.”
The video features on-screen text blaming “international students” for the illegal dumping of garbage in the area.
The post garnered a wave of reactions, with many targeting Indian migrants directly.
One user commented, “You import Indians, you become India. Good luck, Canada.” Another wrote, “This is normal for Indian people. They’re used to living in sh*t.” A third user added, “It’s in their culture to be filthy.”
Some users compared the situation to conditions in India, with one remarking, “Surprised? Take one look at Delhi.” Others voiced frustration over changes in their neighborhoods. “Same everywhere. My neighbours sold their house; now 10 students live there, and it’s a mess,” one commenter shared. Another lamented, “What used to have such beautiful scenery was all destroyed.”
Amid the flood of vitriol, a handful of users countered the anti-India rhetoric. One user remarked, “Been seeing white people doing this to indigenous peoples’ lands for as long as I’ve been alive. You’re all just racists.” Another pointed to potential flaws in municipal services, suggesting, “Seems the city is slacking in their pickup services?”
This incident highlights a growing trend of blaming migrants, particularly Indians, for various issues in Canada. Previously, a Canadian citizen alleged that Indian women were traveling to Canada to give birth and secure citizenship for their children. Sharing his personal experience, he claimed that while his niece was in a hospital maternity ward, a nurse mentioned it was “full of foreign Indian women” who had come to Canada solely to deliver their babies.
The man further alleged that these women return to India with their Canadian-born children, who later use their citizenship to migrate back and sponsor their families. He wrote on X, “Canadian hospitals won’t turn anybody away, so they accept all these foreign Indian women, completely filling up the many wards. Of course, I bet they get a bill for the birth because they don’t have Canadian healthcare, but how are they going to collect? You see, they fly back to India with their baby after they use our healthcare system.”