Councillor claims mayor is “weaponizing communities” to target other councillors
Vancouver Mayor Ken Sim violated the city’s code of conduct and “objectively harassed” a newly elected councillor by using his office and public platforms to single him out, an independent investigation has found.
The probe – conducted by investigator Jamie Pytel of Kingsgate Legal – followed a complaint by Coun. Sean Orr and examined a city hall news conference on April 8, 2025 and a social media post on Oct. 4, 2025, according to CBC News.
At the April event, Sim publicly denounced a 2021 post by Orr on X, in which Orr referred to “a secret cabal of Jews” allegedly controlling Vancouver city planners. Orr has said the post was sarcastic and quoted from a comedian.
In 2024, 14 Jewish members of the Public Service Alliance of Canada (PSAC) filed human rights complaints against their union, claiming it has been “advancing an anti-Israel agenda and causing a culture of discrimination and harassment against Jewish PSAC members.”
Findings and recommended remedies
Pytel concluded that convening a mayoral press conference to attack a councillor over the 2021 post breached Vancouver’s Code of Conduct and misused the influence of the mayor’s office, according to CBC’s account of the report. The findings state that Sim “objectively harassed” Orr by implying he was antisemitic and by creating “a hostile environment for him as a newly elected councillor.”
The Oct.4, 2025 X post – in which Sim alleged that Orr had taken part in an event he said was linked to a terrorist organisation – was found to be a “continuation of the harassment.” The report says the mayor’s actions encouraged negative sentiment toward Orr, according to the report.
The investigation recommended that Sim issue a written apology to Orr for misusing his office and for his comments at the 2025 press conference and online. It also called for a corrective social media post acknowledging the misconduct.
COPE Vancouver called on Sim to apologise and retract his statements. The party said the ruling showed the mayor had “created a hostile work environment” for councillors and staff. COPE school trustee Suzie Mah said “a pattern emerging from Ken Sim is making stuff up to stoke anger in ethnic communities,” adding that he was “using the city’s diversity to divide people, instead of bring people together. That needs to stop.”
Mayor’s response and separate lawsuit
Meanwhile, Sim has rejected the investigation’s conclusions. In an emailed statement reported by CBC, he said his comments were made “against the backdrop of a wave of rising antisemitism and hate across Canada.”
“All elected officials have a responsibility to speak out when a segment of our city feels targeted and unsafe,” he said. “I reject the claim that it was not my duty as mayor to stand shoulder to shoulder with the Jewish residents of Vancouver.”
In April 2025, the Jewish Federation of Greater Vancouver and the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs (CIJA) denounced previous social media posts from Orr:
“Antisemitism – whether expressed overtly or cloaked in the language of political discourse – has no place in our society, let alone among our elected officials. Councillor Orr’s comments have caused harm to the Jewish community and have eroded trust in his ability to represent all residents of Vancouver,” the groups said.
In 2024, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman called for unity within the tech industry to support Muslim and Arab colleagues feeling discomfort in speaking out about their experiences.
