The BCCLA gives a standing ovation to Murray and Peter Corren for succeeding in their human rights complaint against the BC Ministry of Education for refusing to include sexual orientation as a cross-curricular interest in the curriculum. A month before the scheduled tribunal hearing, the parties announced a negotiated settlement that includes the development of an elective course for Grade 12 students called Social Justice 12, that looks at legal, political and ethical perspectives that inform Canadians' understanding of justice and equality.
For six years the Correns battled stalling tactics and diversions on the part of the government. The Association has participated in many legal challenges regarding the importance of tolerance and diversity in school and has long supported the Correns' efforts to see the provincial curriculum made more inclusive of gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgendered people. For outing the curriculum issue that dared not speak its name, we applaud the Correns.
The BCCLA claims a B.C. Supreme Court victory for minority sexual rights this month. The dispute involves one Peter Hayes, who brought a human rights complaint against the Vancouver Police Department alleging that a VPD officer had denied him a chauffeur's licence because Mr. Hayes is Pagan and engages in BDSM (bondage and discipline, domination and submission, and sadism and masochism) sexual practices. The City of Vancouver (acting on behalf of the VDP) tried to have the case tossed by the Tribunal on the basis that the claim was without merit and could not possibly succeed because BDSM is not a form of "sexual orientation" as defined by the B.C. Human Rights Code. The Tribunal rejected the City's contention, saying that there should at least be a hearing so that the Tribunal would have an evidentiary basis for making its decision. Not content to let them be tied up at home, the City of Vancouver tried to tie them up in court: the City applied to the B.C. Supreme Court for judicial review of that Tribunal decision.
The BCCLA intervened in the matter at the BC Supreme Court. We said the Tribunal was right to reject the City's attempt to kibosh the hearing because human rights laws need to be interpreted flexibly and expansively to respond to changing social conditions. We argued that the Tribunal should hear detailed evidence about BDSM to make the most informed decision possible. The Supreme Court Judge dismissed the City's application: another victory for minority sexual rights.
The BCCLA takes the position that, where it causes no harm to others, all people should be free to express their sexuality without fear of reprisal from the government. We are currently undertaking an analysis of the consequences of protecting BDSM practices under the definition of "sexual orientation" in the Code. There is more to come at this leading edge of sexual freedom. We thank Rebecca Smyth and Grace Pastine, both from Bull, Housser and Tupper, for ably representing the Association.
The BCCLA received a complaint about the ineligibility of migrant farm workers for immediate provincial medical coverage. We understand that B.C. is the only province in Canada denying immediate health insurance coverage under MSP to agricultural workers brought in to the country under the Federal Seasonal Agricultural Workers Program. According to a spokesperson for the B.C. Ministry of Health, workers are eligible for MSP after a three-month waiting period.
The BCCLA says that the waiting period is often a significant portion of the time that many workers are working in Canada and advocates say that many workers are told by their employers that they do not quality for MSP at all. We have requested a meeting with the B.C. Minister of Health about this disparity between B.C. and other provinces, a disparity that may well constitute a breach of Canada Health Act principles, Charter values and Human Rights obligations.
Representatives of the BCCLA met recently with Josiah Wood, Q.C. and his team auditing and reviewing the police complaint process in British Columbia. Ensuring an accessible and fair system for police complaints has long been a project of the BCCLA. The system for complaints for municipal police was last updated in 1998 after the Oppal Inquiry Report.
Eight years on and we are calling for more changes including giving the Police Complaint Commissioner the authority to investigate complaints directly and to substitute discipline decision of Chiefs of Police. As well, we are urging reform to remove barriers to access for complainants and provide assistance to them in lodging complaints. We are also working to have the RCMP covered by the provincial complaint system.
Call the BCCLA office to book a BCCLA speaker today! Sex, drugs or reform of assisted suicide laws; no topic is off limits for the BCCLA as long as it involves civil liberties and freedom. Call us at 604-687-2919 or e-mail us at info@bccla.org.
Civil Liberties Update is a summary of some of the B.C. Civil Liberties Association's recent work. The Association publishes a newsletter, The Democratic Commitment, an annual report and posts its positions, submissions, legal arguments and news releases at www.bccla.org.
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