Mohammed Hassan came to Sudbury as an international student five years ago, but these days, he isn't feeling very welcome.

Hassan says he was looking to buy a used cell phone on the Facebook group Sudbury Buy and Swap, but he and the seller could not agree on the price.

That's when he was sent a message calling him a "useless Muslim" and saying he was "unwanted and unwelcome in Sudbury."

"I felt, as he said it exactly, I'm unwelcome here. I would not say I'm unwanted, but I'm unwelcome," says Hassan.

Hassan says he reported the message to the police. No one from Greater Sudbury Police Services was available for comment on the specifics of this case.

A page on the department's website says hate crime can include actions such as name-calling and using racial slurs, however not every incident constitutes a criminal offence.

'We are all human'

Hassan says this incident has changed the way he thinks about Canada.

He used to encourage friends and family in his home country of Saudi Arabia to move here because of how open and welcoming it is. But as he's experienced more and more racism, he's not sure that's the case anymore.

Hassan hopes people in Sudbury can learn from his experience, and talk openly with each other about their differences.

"Come talk to me. Come talk to us," he says. "When you know people, you will understand that we all are human."