SooToday received the following open letter from Action4Canada CEO, who says the flyers that were distributed near Sault Ste Marie schools contain some content from an A4C flyer, but are not official Action4Canada materials.
Flyers being distributed near schools in the Sault Ste Marie community are not official Action4Canada materials, contrary to reports in local media.
In response to the recent frenzy over flyers, it is firstly important for everyone involved, the school board, media, etc., to understand that distributing flyers/brochures or leaflets is a Constitutionally protected freedom according to the following Supreme Court ruling. Committee for the Commonwealth of Canada v Canada 1991 CanLII 119, L’Heureux-Dubé.
Secondly, the flyer being distributed was not Action4Canada's, but it did include some content from an A4C flyer.
Either way, the flyers being distributed were handed out on public property outside of schools and were done so within the parameters of the law. It is not illegal to hand out flyers, and permission from the school, or school board, is not required.
Action4Canada's flyer is about protecting children and is intended to help parents become aware of sexually explicit content being taught within all levels of the curriculum. The flyer further warns parents that books containing sexually explicit and graphic books are also being made available to children.
The curriculum, learning resources and all books for minors must be age-appropriate, not cause emotional harm and should not be sexually explicit so as to stay within the bounds of the rule of law and School/Education Acts.
It is understood that the curriculum and/or learning resources and many of the books have been permitted to support the diversity and inclusion guidelines and to support the amendment to the Human Rights Code to include gender identity and expression. However, the amendment to the Human Rights Code to include “gender identity and gender expression” as a protected class is not an open invitation nor defence for the Ministries of Education to develop resources or for the School Boards to utilize resources that groom, sexualize, indoctrinate, create anxiety and depression, or confuse children.
Further, the amendment does not absolve any citizen, including elected and appointed officials, from adhering first and foremost to the criminal code. Specifically, Sections 163.1, 171.1 and 152 clearly state that it is illegal to sexualize children or expose them to pornographic and/or explicit material or resources with crude content.
We expect that this message clarifies our position that we will continue to put the safety and well-being of children ahead of social and political agendas.
Tanya Gaw, Action4Canada, founder and CEO