Another grievous attack on religious freedom

Human rights commissions and their equity codes have constructed a sexual dogma being forced upon all and sundry, including Catholic school boards, which have a right under the Charter to uphold the Catholic faith and maintain a Catholic identity. This is another egregious example of state incursion into areas of religious freedom. From The Star:

EDMONTON—A transgendered teacher fired by a Catholic school district is rejecting a settlement offer because it would require him to keep quiet and drop a human rights complaint.

Jan Buterman says he will proceed with his complaint against Greater St. Albert Catholic Schools, which wrote him a letter in 2008 praising his abilities but dismissing him for not being aligned with the values of the Catholic Church.

Buterman, who was a substitute teacher in St. Albert, just north of Edmonton, says the publicly funded school district can’t buy his silence with an offer of $78,000 cash or a one-year teaching job.

“I don’t want to be muzzled,” says Buterman, who has worked as a teacher elsewhere since he was fired. “They don’t want me to talk about the fact that they, as an employer, claiming authority from the Catholic Church, have discriminated against me because of my medical status as a transsexual person.”

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The Alberta Teachers’ Association also appears to think so. The union has decided it will no longer pay for Buterman’s lawyers, who have called the cash offer “substantial” and advised him that it’s more than most employers would offer a short-term employee. They have also suggested that rejecting the settlement because of its confidentiality clause could make Buterman look bad.

“After dismissal, the issue of focus could then be on the monetary amount or types of settlement offered to you, rather than the nature of your complaint,” the lawyers say in a letter.

“It is easy to imagine the variety of negative conclusions that could be drawn from it, including those that focus on the generosity (of the board) towards you.”

Buterman, who is also a political activist with the Trans Equality Society of Alberta, scoffs at the suggestion.

For months he spoke out in favour of federal Bill C-389, which would have amended the Canadian Human Rights Act to prohibit discrimination on the basis of gender identity or gender expression. The bill passed third reading in Parliament earlier this year, but died in the Senate last month when the federal election was called.

Buterman says he has a right to speak out about the discrimination he faced.

But Catholics have a right to have teachers who line up with the teachings of the Church and God's plan for human sexuality teaching their students.

Tell the candidates in your riding that religious freedom is a key issue for you and that you want Section 13 of the Canadian Human Rights Code axed. The Catholic Civil Rights League is calling for this in its election guide.