A chef and restaurant owner in Maple Ridge, B.C. catered an event for federal Opposition Leader Pierre Poilievre and about 40 local Conservatives last Friday evening. Veronica Reale later publicized the occasion on social media.

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That’s when the harassment began.

“This was scary for me, it was very bad,” Reale of Ronny’s Bistro told Maple Ridge News.

The furore unfolded after Poilievre did an unannounced stop in Maple Ridge. Local MP, Marc Dalton, hosted the event for him at the bistro. The harassment ran the spectrum from one-star reviews and critical Google comments to online talk about boycotting her business, she said.

At a time when thousands of restaurants across Canada have gone under, Reale was afraid of the negative impact on the positive reputation she has been building for almost three years.

Dalton shared his concern about the abuse directed at Reale in a Tuesday email to National Post: “The acrimony and online abuse directed at Veronica Reale after she hosted a Conservative event with Pierre Poilievre should alarm Canadians across the political spectrum. Reale is not a political actor. She is a restaurant owner. Yet she was targeted with one-star reviews and boycott threats simply for renting her space. That is not political disagreement, it is economic intimidation.”

Sensitive to the challenges faced by small business owners like Reale, he notes that they “operate on thin margins. They employ local workers and support families. Weaponizing online platforms to punish them for perceived political guilt crosses a dangerous line.”

Instead, Dalton urges Canadians to “debate ideas” and “protest peacefully. But do not attempt to destroy a neighbour’s livelihood with fake reviews from people who were never customers. That kind of coercion has no place in Canada.”

Reale began her career learning the art of pizza-making in her native Italy. The single mother immigrated to Canada 12 years ago, working in the food industry, later opening her own restaurant.

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She says she was appreciative of the business last Friday and insists that she is not politically active. But less than an hour after she made the social media post, she felt compelled to delete it. Immediately, there were a lot of negative responses, she says.

“After 40 minutes, I had to delete it,” she told Maple Ridge News. “I’m not political, and I didn’t know it could be so bad, just hosting a meeting.”

Dalton took to social media to defend Reale, posting his support, as well as anger at the negative commenters on his Facebook page.

“Cancel culture has real and devastating impacts. When businesses are harassed or threatened over political disagreement, livelihoods are put at risk and communities are harmed,” Dalton wrote. “Small businesses should never become collateral damage for someone else’s outrage. Hosting a meeting does not justify intimidation or online abuse.”

Fighting back to maintain her reputation, Reale spent three days communicating with Google. The bistro’s reviews and rating are now back to where they were before the online vitriol: 4.6 out of five, with reviews that include comments such as “true hidden gem,” and “a charming spot with a friendly atmosphere.”

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