Man who wore blackface to a Toronto anti-Black racism protest charged

A 28-year-old man has been charged after attending a peaceful protest in blackface in Toronto on Saturday. 

Toronto Police released a statement Tuesday saying that a man named Deivis Shtembari has been charged with disorderly conduct. 

A man was recorded arriving at an anti-Black racism rally at Nathan Phillips Square Saturday afternoon with black paint all over his face, neck, and hands. 

A guy shows up to a protest in #Toronto in black face 🥴... pic.twitter.com/5whbwjSHg9

— quickwiththetea (@quickwiththetea) June 7, 2020

He was confronted by attendees, who told him to leave and chanted "Fuck you, go home." 

At one point the man in blackface was captured yelling, "If I want to put this on my face I can put it on my face," into the crowd. 

He was escorted out of Nathan Phillips Square by officers, who then arrested him for breach of peace. He was officially charged with causing a disturbance. 

The highly racist act underscores the global movement toward ending anti-Black and anti-Indigenous racism, and the many rallies happening against police brutality in the wake of George Floyd's death. 

Shtembari is scheduled to appear at Old City Hall on July 16 at 11 a.m.