BC Should Ditch Gender Identity School Curriculum, Says Provincial Tory Leader

John Rustad (L), leader of the B.C. Conservatives, in a file photo. The Canadian Press/Darryl Dyck

The leader of the B.C. Conservatives says it’s important for his party, which has recently been surging in the polls, to address issues surrounding the province’s Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity (SOGI) 123 curriculum, as it has become a very divisive topic.

“You’ve got tens of thousands of parents across the province expressing concern about their education system,“ John Rustad told The Epoch Times. ”I think what it really boils down to for many parents and grandparents is they’re worried about their children’s innocence.”

Mr. Rustad said there’s too much graphic information available in school libraries, harking back to one of the first questions his party posed to the government in the current sitting about a book whose content was deemed too racy to be read in the legislature.

He said SOGI 123 “needs to be replaced with a strong anti-bullying [approach] and full acceptance of everyone in our schools, and remove this lightning rod.”

“This also boils down to the fact that the education system is telling kids not to tell their parents—they’re not including parents in these decisions and that’s just wrong,” Mr. Rustad said.

During the current sitting in the legislature, both B.C. Conservative Party MLAs—Mr. Rustad and Bruce Banman—focused on school curriculum and content in school libraries as the first items raised.

Other provinces, such as New Brunswick and Saskatchewan, have started changing school policies in response to the issue of parental inclusion. New policies in both provinces state that parents must give consent to students wanting to change their names or pronouns if they are under 16 years of age.

Mr. Rustad said he supports the actions of both provinces.

“Parents raise children, not the government. When you’re excluding parents from children’s education, when you’re excluding parents from these sorts of decisions and discussions, it’s wrong,” he said. “So I applaud those governments for taking the steps they’re taking and doing what’s right.”

Both New Brunswick and Saskatchewan have faced challenges to their proposed policies. In Saskatchewan, a legal challenge resulted in a court allowing an injunction against the policy implementation. Premier Scott Moe has said his government will use the notwithstanding clause to get the policy enacted in provincial schools.

Growing Tory Support

The B.C. Conservatives achieved official party status in the legislature only in September, after Mr. Banman, a BC United MLA, crossed the floor. Mr. Rustad, who had been serving as an independent after being ousted from the BC Liberals (now BC United), himself crossed the floor in February, giving the Conservatives a major boost.

Now, the party seems to be amassing a following.

A recent poll by Leger found that the Conservative Party of B.C. would take second place in popular votes if a provincial election were to be held now. The results pushed BC United, the official Opposition, into third place.

Support for the Conservatives was pegged at 25 percent, while support for BC United dropped to 19 percent. Support for the ruling NDP was at 42 percent.

It’s something that Mr. Rustad said shows that people in the province want choice.

“I think that’s why we really have been able to build a grassroots movement across the province, because we are going to be talking about doing things different, significant change, because that’s what’s needed,” he said.

“This sort of shift in politics doesn’t happen very often—once every generation or two, or maybe even longer. I think people in this province are ready for change. They’re ready for a party that is going to fight just for the average, everyday person.”

‘Very Little Discussion’ on SOGI

B.C. Premier David Eby has accused Mr. Rustad of attacking SOGI for political gain after having supported the legislation when he was with BC United.

“When he sat on this side of the House, he supported those same policies,” Mr. Eby said during question period on Oct. 3 when Mr. Rustad questioned the government on SOGI 123.

“It is outrageous that he would stand here and do this. He sees political advantage in picking on kids and families and teachers and schools who are just trying to do their best for kids who are at risk of suicide.”

Mr. Rustad told The Epoch Times his change of position came after he saw the impact the curriculum was having.

“When SOGI was first introduced in 2016, it was introduced by Mike Burnett, who was the education minister at the time. I was minister for aboriginal relations and reconciliation. And there was no vote on it. There was very little discussion on it,” he said.

He said he didn’t read the legislation as he was busy with his own ministry and work. At the time, he said he was told it was an anti-bullying program.

“I support anti-bullying, so I thought, OK, no big deal, and I was for it. It wasn’t until I got into late 2017 and into 2018 that I started to learn just what SOGI was about. And I guess, you know, I learned a good lesson,” he said.

Parental Rights Protests

Protests across Canada on Sept. 20, dubbed the 1 Million March for Children, saw thousands march against the teaching of gender ideology in schools. Many counter-protesters also turned out, saying the rallies were an attack on the LGBT community.

Mr. Rustad believes the rallies were born out of frustration, not hate.

“They’re not out against the LGBTQ community or the transgender community. They want to be accepting,” he said, saying he had met with some of those involved in the marches.

“This is about love and understanding, but it’s also about their rights as parents to be able to be involved in their children’s education and to be able to make those decisions.”

“We should be letting kids be kids,” Mr. Rustad said. “We should let them enjoy their innocence. And we should be teaching kids how to think, not what to think.”