A former NDP MP is criticizing “woke school boards” over several recent controversies, saying the actions of the school boards are giving conservatives “ammunition.”
In a Twitter post, Erin Weir, who was the Regina-Lewvan MP from 2015 to 2019 and a member of the federal NDP party from 2015 to 2018, referred to the case of Carolyn Burjoski, a Waterloo, Ont., teacher who was ejected from a January 2022 school board meeting after raising concerns about the age-appropriateness of sexual content contained in some of the library books available to elementary school children.
Weir also mentioned the case of Mike Ramsey, a Waterloo Region District School Board (WRDSB) trustee who spoke up in defence of Burjoski and often took opposing views to some other board members on issues such as critical race theory and free speech. He was later suspended from participating in school meetings for several months for allegedly violating the WRDSB’s “Trustee Code of Conduct.”
Weir added that the Halton District School Board (HDSB) is now “defending the absurd” in standing behind a Toronto-area teacher who has been photographed and videotaped in class wearing large prosthetic breasts. The teacher, who works at Oakville Trafalgar High School (OTHS), has gained international attention and sparked controversy over the issue.
Margo Shuttleworth, HDSB chair, previously told The Epoch Times that the school board is “standing behind” the teacher “as prescribed by the Ontario Charter of Human Rights.”
The school board has received backlash for its stance.
On Sept. 23, students, parents, and local residents gathered outside OTHS in protest. Two days later, another demonstration was held outside of a Burlington high school about 20 minutes away from OTHS and was attended by federal People’s Party of Canada leader, Maxime Bernier.
Weir’s Twitter post was in response to one by Gerald Butts, former principal secretary to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. Butts said in his post that the federal Conservatives “really are copying the US organizing plan,” referencing leader Pierre Poilievre’s comments that Canadian conservatives need to run for school board trustee positions to avoid them being dominated by the “woke left.”
In response, Weir said that “Maybe ‘woke’ school boards should stop handing conservatives so much ammunition?”
Across Ontario, a growing number of candidates who say politics and ideology should be kept out of classrooms are running for school board trustee positions as the Oct. 24 election date looms.
