Rempelia Prime links to an article in the Toronto Star regarding MP Stephen Harper's opening speech in the Same-Sex Marriage debate in the House of Commons. In the speech MP Harper said the following
"Let us not forget it was the Liberal party that said none is too many when it came to Jews fleeing from Hitler. It was the Liberal party that interned Japanese Canadians in camps on Canada's West Coast, an act Pierre Trudeau refused to apologize or make restitution for, leaving it to Brian Mulroney to see justice done," Harper said.
Harper went on to say Conservatives led the way on anti-apartheid actions.
I guess it is fair game to question whether the present Liberal Party should be questioned for the conduct of their Party in past. Since this happens all the time and people love to beat up on the Conservatives for their past I would say it should stand. The Toronto Star thinks otherwise. In the article Tonda MacCharles quotes several human rights leader to make the point that MP Harper was not a solid ground. I noticed one "funny" thing though.
In January I did a review of the Fifth Estate program Sticks and Stones and quoted Tim Graham of the Media Research Center, "what they don’t tell you, what they don’t report on. Why do they call conservative groups conservative and liberal groups are just for the public interest".
What did Tonda MacCharles not tell us? All of the people she quoted are leftists. Audrey Kobayshi is a Professor of Geography at Queens University who is cross-appointed to the Department of Women's Studies.
...as a feminist, anti-racist, and activist, I am concerned about the ways that the discipline of geography has been an agent for reinforcement of dominant ideas.
Some of her research into "Gender in Geography" can be found here.
Not only is Patrick Case chairman of the Canadian Race Relations Foundation but he is a active member in the LGBT movement. At the University of Guelph he leader of Project Vision which
...is an initiative of the Human Rights and Equity Office that seeks to identify both the challenges and positive conditions affecting the participation of lesbians, gay men, bisexual and transgendered (LGBT) people on campus. Our goal is to develop strategies that create a work, study and research environment free from harassment or discrimination and one where interactions can take place in an atmosphere of mutual trust and respect.
Laudable goals indeed. Mr. Case is also the key signatory of the petition to get MP Harper to end his ad campaign promoting the traditional definition of marriage.
...We have enjoyed the protections available under the Charter for 20 years now, as well as those provided under various human rights legislation found across the country. We support gays and lesbians who are seeking to have the same choices as other Canadians - that is the choice to marry or not. Courts across Canada have affirmed that right. To deny our fellow Canadians the same choices that other Canadians have is simply wrong and discriminatory. We will not be a party to continued discrimination against gay and lesbian Canadians.
Who else signed this petition? How about Judy Hanazawa and Yves Savoie, also quoted in the Toronto Star story. What, were the other signatories unavailable for comment? And finally the last person quoted in the article, Alex Munter, is openly gay.
Let me be clear, I have no problem with any of the people quoted in the article playing an activist role in this issue. Bill C-38 has important implications for the future of Canada and it deserves a vigorous debate. This debate is well served by the opinions of those quoted on the issue of SSM itself. However the way in which they were quoted was disingenuous. They were asked to comment on MP Harper's comments on human rights with respect to the turning away of Jewish people and the internment of the Japanese during WWII. Kobayashi, Case, Hanazawa et al are not disinterested observers in this debate and in fact they have every reason to counter MP Harper's arguments. This activism and bias is never declared in the Toronto Star article. This "hidden agenda" is a dishonest way of presenting an argument.
In the age of Google, the Toronto Star should know better. This issue is too important to not have all the facts on the table.
Cross-linked to the Shotgun
