Reports of anti-Asian racism have been on the rise, with Vancouver police recording a 700 per cent jump in anti-Asian hate crimes in 2020. In January, Cowichan Tribes members reported being refused service by some local businesses after an outbreak of COVID-19 on the reserve. The Community Justice Centre in the Comox Valley will receive $5,000 to continue its work supporting individuals or groups who experience racism, homophobia, transphobia and hate. The centre can help people file a police complaint about an incident, connect them to local services that provide counselling or work on a restorative-justice approach by engaging the person responsible for an incident, said Bruce Curtis, chief administrator of the justice centre.