The Night of the Election Returns!

October 14th, 2008

Just to pre-emptively explain why I haven’t been working on Wednesday morning’s post…

Tories Ditch Film Censorship Bill

October 10th, 2008

The federal Conservatives have withdrawn a film censorship clause from bill C-10. The clause, which would have allowed the government to withdraw tax credits to films and television shows that they deem “contrary to public policy,” was dropped amidst declining support in the polls during the election.

Evangelical lobbyist, Charles McVety, originally claimed responsibility for the clause, indicating that that any films with gay content, such as the sweet family comedy, Breakfast With Scot, would be among those ineligible for tax credits.

While I’m happy that the clause has been turfed, I wouldn’t doubt for a second that the Tories would introduce it again, or would have even turfed it if their poll support hadn’t been slipping.

They just really don’t want Slap Upside The Head: The Film to see the light of day!

Election Sign Vandalism is Ridiculous

October 8th, 2008

After reading about an anonymous vandal who wrote anti-gay slurs all over a gay MP’s election posters, I got to thinking a little bit about election sign vandalism in general.

I’m not a fan of election signs, to understate the matter a tad. Election season is visual mayhem at its most mayhem-y. It’s like if Satan, Attila the Hun, and Cruella de Vil all got together to form an advertising enterprise, enslaved humanity in the corrugated plastic mines, and used all their resources in a conspiracy to eliminate depth-of-field. Trees? Think of them as nature’s signposts! Lampposts are just long necks for headshots. Heck, why not use election sign pillars as a post for even more election signs?

That said, I can’t say I understand the purpose of vandalizing election property.

For one, vandalism actually makes the signs uglier. Second, as far as communicating one’s political leanings goes, it’s not worth the effort. I mean, say you really, really disagree with an election candidate. Will painting an eyepatch on him sway voters? Would anyone walking along the road suddenly believe the candidate has switched gears partway though the election to reveal himself as a fearsome, swashbuckling pirate? (Whatever swashbuckling means, anyway.)

There’s also a chance that sign-seers would feel compassion for the vandalees. While all parties are surely victims when it comes to poster-haters, those that draw the most shocking or widespread vandalism could garner at least some sympathy, maybe even in the form of votes. That’s why vandalism as a means of political expression is fundamentally counterproductive.

Personally, I think seeing the word “fag” scrawled over Scott Brison’s signs should be cause enough to remind people that homophobia is very much alive and well, and has definitely reminded me why we absolutely need gay representatives and supporters who will help put a stop to it.

So, for those of you who absolutely feel compelled to damage, cut, or otherwise modify election property, may I suggest that you just indiscriminately remove the freakin’ eyesores altogether and write a letter to the editor instead. The horizon will thank you.

Tories Cut Funding For Gay Festival

October 6th, 2008

The Conservative government has denied funding for the world’s largest charity gay dance festival, Black & Blue, for the third consecutive year. The annual Montréal festival, which contains over 60 events and raises money for HIV/AIDS research and gay community groups, used to receive up to $50,000 annually from Canadian Heritage until the Conservatives took power. Since then, their funding has been consistently denied.

Robert Vezina, president of the non-profit group that organizes the festival, said he was frustrated by the unprofessional behaviour from the government since the Conservatives took power:

Ever since the Harper government was in power, we’ve got zero. The reasons are really nebulous—they’re really sneaky. They give us answers that contradict themselves from year to year, and then verbally, they tell us on the phone we’re not “family oriented enough,” and then of course when we ask them to put this in writing they don’t.

Mauril Bélanger, the former deputy chair of Canadian Heritage, said that he wasn’t surprised by the cuts, considering the government in power:

I think we’ve seen that time and again from this government—ideology trumps objectivity, trumps respect, trumps treating all of us equally. [This is] a government that makes decisions by ideology that is basically targetting some segments of our population unfairly, and that is not the country I know.

To compensate for their lost funding, Black & Blue will reportedly alter this year’s event schedule to contain fewer all-night dance parties and more family puppet square dancing afternoons.

Candidate Declares That Gays Should Be Killed

October 3rd, 2008

This illustration intentionally left blank. (Well, I guess it's not really blank; I mean, there's text here, but let's just say some people aren't worth the drawing time.)

An independent candidate in Sudbury, Ontario shocked an audience of high school students during a federal election debate by calling for the murder of all gay people.

David Popescu made the comments in response to a audience member’s question about same-sex marriage. Many in the audience were reported to have risen to their feet in disgust, while the other candidates from the Liberal, NDP, and First Peoples National Party watched in stunned silence.

In a telephone interview with The Sudbury Star, Popescu unabashedly re-iterated his position, indeed promoting the murder of every gay person:

A young man asked me what I think of homosexual marriages and I said I think homosexuals should be executed. My whole reason for running is the Bible and the Bible couldn’t be more clear on that point.

What a miserable, small man.

Inciting hatred and calling for the murder of identifiable groups is illegal in Canada, and Sudbury police started their investigation within hours of the debate.

While Popescu’s behaviour requires punishment by law, Sudbury Secondary School deserves strong condemnation for their lax reaction and for refusing to clarify whether or not they would allow Popescu to speak at the school again. Principal Paul Camillo said that the school “respect[s] all other opinions, although we may not agree with them.” What a cowardly, disgusting stance in the face of an invited potential policymaker who directly called for the execution of a large number of the school’s students.

Holy Crap! Canada Accepts Gay Refugee!

October 1st, 2008

The Immigration and Refugee Board has decided not to deport Ismail Mulawa, a gay refugee claimant from Uganda.

(Parenthetically, sorry for the somewhat unrelated illustration today; I just hadn’t really prepared anything to draw in this situation.)

Homosexuality is illegal in Uganda, so when Mulawa came to Canada for the 2006 International AIDS Conference, he skipped his flight back home, claiming refugee status. Several conference attendees had seeked asylum once arriving in Canada, but not all that based their claim on being gay have had much luck. Canada has an abysmal record when it comes to dealing with gay refugees, often burdening claimants with providing substantial proof of their homosexuality—despite them having had to hide all traces of it from previous governments. Thankfully, Refugee Board member Tom Pinkney sympathized with Mulawa’s situation. Mulawa now qualifies for permanent resident status and can be a full citizen in as little as two years.

Congratulations to Mulawa and his new home!

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