Canadian town fined for refusing to celebrate Pride Month, fly rainbow flag

A Canadian town is facing a fine of $10,000 for refusing to participate in Pride Month and fly the "LGBTQ2 rainbow flag" outside its municipal building.

The town of Emo, Ontario, which has a population of about 1,300 and is situated near the border with Minnesota, was found to have violated the Ontario Human Rights Code by the Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario for refusing to proclaim June as Pride Month, according to a report from the National Post.

The town was also issued a citation for its failure to fly "an LGBTQ2 rainbow flag," the report notes, despite Emo not having an official flag pole.

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In addition to the $10,000 fine, officials from the town were ordered to complete mandatory "human rights" training.

According to the report, the decision to cite Emo began with a 2020 incident in which the town was approached by a group called Borderland Pride, which issued a written request asking that Emo declare June Pride Month.

The group’s request also included a draft proclamation, containing clauses such as "pride is necessary to show community support and belonging for LGBTQ2 individuals" and "the diversity of sexual orientation, gender identity, and gender expression represents a positive contribution to society."

Borderland Pride also asked the city to fly an "LGBTQ2 rainbow flag for a week of your choosing."

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The request was defeated by a 3-2 vote at a later Emo township council meeting, where Mayor Harold McQuaker argued there was "no flag being flown for the other side of the coin… there’s no flags being flown for the straight people."

The line was seen as particularly offensive to Human Rights Tribunal vice-chair Karen Dawson, who said she found the remark "demeaning and disparaging of the LGBTQ2 community of which Borderland Pride is a member and therefore constituted discrimination under the Code."

Dawson further argued that the remark was made in "close proximity" to  McQuaker’s no vote on the Borderland Pride request, meaning it "constituted discrimination under the Code."

Borderland Pride sought a $15,000 fine for the Township as well as a $10,000 fine for each of the three council members who voted no on the group’s request, according to the report, though the tribunal eventually settled on the $10,000 fine for the township and a $5,000 for McQuaker.

McQuaker and Emo’s chief administrative officer were also ordered to complete an online course offered by the Ontario Human Rights Commission called "Human Rights 101" and "provide proof of completion… to Borderland Pride within 30 days."