Ted Morton's Bill 208 Is Back
Someone call a nanny! Alberta’s hysterical temper-tantrum over same-sex marriage is still going strong, apparently. Ted Morton (MLA and super bigot extraordinaire ) resumed debate on Bill 208 Friday. The bill, which was presumed dead after legislature ended back in spring, was granted a surprise resurrection.
Here’s what the bill will do, if passed:
- Allow civil marriage commissioners to refuse their public services to gays
- Allow teachers to refuse to acknowledge the existence of same-sex marriage in Canada
- Force teachers to hand out “parental warnings” if they do choose to acknowledge reality
- Remove all punishment for an individual “exercising their beliefs” against gay marriage.
Un-freaking-believable!
Julie Lloyd, a local activist, is terrified.
The effects of this bill, should it become law in Alberta, would be devastating for gays and lesbians.
[Bill 208], if passed, would allow employers to fire gays and let landlords evict gay tenants with impunity because they’re “exercising a belief against same-sex marriage.”
Of course, the bill is also grossly unconstitutional, and certainly wouldn’t survive a court challenge (assuming the obscure notwithstanding clause isn’t used—which Alberta has done before to prevent court challenges to a ban on same-sex marriage from 2000-2005). But, really, even if the bill doesn’t survive, how much more of this hemorrhaging fit can Teddy produce?
Yeah, that’s totally a rhetorical question.
- Battle lines being drawn over Alberta same-sex bill [Globe and Mail]
- City gays & lesbians lash out [Edmonton SUN]
