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Friday, July 11, 2025

LEVY: Toronto school board bringing in quota system for specialized schools

By
Sue-Ann Levy
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Specialty arts and athletic schools with the Toronto District School Board (TDSB) plan to undercut competency and merit-based entrance requirements in favour of a quota system based on random selection and “historically underserved” students.

The plan was revealed at a recent meeting of the TDSB’s governance committee during questioning by long-time midtown Toronto trustee Shelley Laskin. Board executive officer of finance Craig Snider confirmed there would be “targets” or “quotas” as to who will be granted entry into these highly respected arts and athletic schools.

Superintendent Lorraine Linton was asked whether 25% or 50% of the students accepted would be from underserved communities – numbers determined by TDSB’s own internal census.

“We haven’t (yet) established specific numbers,” Linton answered. 

The discussion pertained to a controversial plan that will drop all criteria to get into highly sought after arts, athletic and other speciality programs at TDSB schools. As of Sep. 2023, students will be picked based only on whether they express an interest in musical theatre, drama, dance, film, music and visual arts, as well as specialty sports programs.

Applicants will no longer be asked to submit marks, participate in entrance exams or even submit audition materials to show that they actually have a talent for any of the arts mentioned, or the discipline to pursue specialized fields of study.

For the high-performing athlete program, interested students may be asked to submit practice schedules and coach letters—with an emphasis on the word “may.”

The report to the committee explains that admissions to these schools need to be “reset” – code for “dumbed down” – to ensure that those who have not had access to private lessons or outside learning opportunities can still apply.

While the report indicates there will be a “random selection process” for the programs and schools, it adds that “priority access” will be given to students in “historically underserved” communities.

Based on the answers to Laskin’s questions, one can surmise that the selection process will be highly skewed to black and visible minority students.

The plan shows that Critical Race Theory (CRT) is alive and flourishing in the TDSB under the leadership of education director Colleen Russell Rawlins. Russell Rawlins introduced the same woke ideology to the Peel school board before leaving Peel to mess up Toronto schools a year ago.

CRT contends that “anti-black racism” is deeply embedded in all western institutions – that these institutions champion white dominance and create an uneven playing field for black people. White people are oppressors, and blacks oppressed.

It is clear from this program – and from a special basketball program restricted to black kids – that this Marxist-aligned ideology is permeating board policies and programs and that the TDSB’s weak trustees, desperate to be woke, are enabling this nonsense.

The basketball program is apartheid-level insanity. Starting May 5 and continuing until mid-June, only Grade 1-3 students who identify as black or racialized have been invited to be coached on basketball skills in the Swansea neighbourhood of Toronto. 

No white, Asian or any other kids need apply.

Talk about “reverse racism.”

Dumbing down the admission criteria to highly regarded arts and athletic programs does not bode well for the future of these respected specialty opportunities either.

What is a specialty program without special standards? 

Dressed in the guise of equity, Russell Rawlins and her bureaucrats are implying that kids from 

“underprivileged” communities – namely black and visible minorities – are so oppressed by those who get all the cherished spots that they require special treatment and the standards to be lowered to even make it into the programs.

One wonders whether Russell Rawlins or her officials ever watch America’s Got Talent. I’ve seen talented kids and adults of all ethnic backgrounds who come from impoverished and abusive homes.

None of them were given free entry into a specialized school program. Most had a dream and worked to make it come to fruition.

There is nothing the least bit progressive about quotas. Removing all competency-based standards and allocating special privileges to some kids and not others iis nothing but an exercise in mediocrity and the soft bigotry of low expectations.

Judges rule against provincial health officers in B.C. and Alberta

By
Harley Sims
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Two rulings in the past two weeks suggest that provincial health officers are not above the law, with judges in British Columbia and Alberta issuing crucial decisions against Dr. Bonnie Henry and Dr. Deena Hinshaw.

This week, a B.C. judge ruled that Henry must face a class-action constitutional challenge to several of her health orders under COVID-19, and that he would not throw the challenge out of court as Henry’s lawyers had requested. 

The petition was put forward by the Canadian Society for the Advancement of Science in Public Policy (CSASPP) – an organization that says it includes at least 41 healthcare professionals. CSASPP argues that Henry’s mandatory vaccination orders for healthcare workers are unconstitutional, and that they did not provide reasonable alternatives to vaccination, including rapid testing and religious or medical exemptions.

It is one of several ongoing challenges to Henry’s pandemic regime, whose vaccine mandates have affected government workers across numerous sectors. The orders, which were put in place from October to November, made two shots of a COVID vaccine a requirement for employment.

Despite Henry’s lawyers arguing that CSASPP was a “purpose-built anti-COVID-19 measures entity” with no prior involvement in the issues of its petition, B.C. Supreme Court Justice Simon Coval ruled that Henry’s health orders did directly affect “a defined and identifiable group” and that the orders did therefore appear to affect their Charter rights.

Justice Coval also found that the petition looks at “important and complex” healthcare issues and that the society deserved legal standing – something Henry’s lawyer had also opposed.

“(CSASPP) alleges that its alternative proposals reflect a superior approach, taken in other Provinces and elsewhere around the world, much less intrusive on healthcare workers’ Charter rights. In my view, this raises substantial questions that meet the threshold of ‘clearly not frivolous.’”

The B.C. ruling echoes a trend from last week that saw an Alberta judge tell provincial health officer Dr. Deena Hinshaw that she could not use “cabinet confidentiality” to avoid answering questions in court about her discussions with government leaders.

Like Henry, Hinshaw is facing a civil suit over the constitutionality of her public health orders.

“In the context of this specific evidence and this specific case, the public interest in disclosing Dr. Hinshaw’s answers to the questions posed by the court outweighs the public interest in keeping the evidence confidential,” Court of Queen’s Bench Justice Barbara Romaine ruled on Apr. 26.

On Apr. 6, Hinshaw’s lawyers had used cabinet confidentiality to object to three questions about whether the Kenney government had directed any of her recommendations.  At the time, Romaine had asked Hinshaw the questions “in camera” (or behind closed doors), with neither counsel nor the public privy to the answers.

These questions included whether Premier Jason Kenney or cabinet members had ever directed her to impose more severe restrictions than she’d recommended, or to impose – against her own advice – stricter measures on certain groups such as churches, gyms or small businesses. Romaine also asked whether cabinet had ever rejected or ignored Hinshaw’s recommendations to loosen restrictions.

Romaine’s ruling means that Hinshaw’s answers must be revealed in open court, although it’s not yet known when that will happen. The government lawyers have also stated they’ll appeal the ordered disclosure.

In the past, Hinshaw had also often cited cabinet confidentiality in refusing to answer journalists’ questions about public health recommendations to the Alberta government.

Although both B.C. and Alberta mandated COVID shots for their public sector healthcare workers, Alberta rescinded the policy in March for workers already hired.

B.C. – which has already fired over 2500 healthcare workers – continues to terminate government workers over vaccine mandates, even as it seeks to fill gaps in its workforce by expediting the certification of foreign-trained nurses.

Ontario staffer fired for donating to truckers suing Doug Ford and Toronto Star journalists

By
Cosmin Dzsurdzsa
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A former staffer for the Ontario government who was fired after donating $100 to the Freedom Convoy is suing Premier Doug Ford, his chief of staff and the Toronto Star journalists who reported her donation. 

Marion Isabeau-Ringuette pledged the money to the Freedom Convoy’s GiveSendGo fundraiser in February. At the time, she worked as Director of Communications for Solicitor General Sylvia Jones, 

After the convoy donation information was illegally leaked, journalists Charlie Pinkerton and Andy Takagi revealed that Isabeau-Ringuette was among the donors. 

The statement of claim alleges that Isabeau-Ringuette was fired within minutes after journalists contacted her for comment. She is seeking almost $2 million in damages for having her career “destroyed.” 

“The Ontario government responded to Pinkerton’s email expressly or implicitly confirming that Ms. Ringuette was the individual whose private confidential information had been stolen and advising Pinkerton that she had been fired from her position at the Ontario Public Service,” the  claim reads. 

“In doing so, the Ontario government participated in the public disclosure of Ms. Ringuette’s stolen private confidential information and the invasion of her privacy. In under one-half hour, Ms. Ringuette’s promising career in the Ontario Public Service had been destroyed.”

According to her lawyers, Isabeau-Ringuette made the donation with “every expectation that her donation would be private and confidential” believing that it was “both legal and in accordance with Ontario government policy at the time it was made.”

“At that time, there was no Ontario government policy against the Freedom Convoy. On February 7, 2022, Ontario received a request from the federal government to attend at a tripartite table with the federal government and the City of Ottawa. Premier Ford’s direction was that Ontario was not to get involved.”

Isabeau-Ringuette has also claimed that both Ford and Chief of Staff Jamie Wallace behaved in “the utmost bad faith” and “deliberately decided to confirm Ms. Ringuette’s identity and to advise that she was no longer an employee of the Ontario Public Service for their own personal political gain.”

“Premier Ford and James Wallace decided to end Ms. Ringuette’s career at the Ontario Public Service because they believed it to be politically expedient for them,” her lawyer wrote. “A provincial election was imminent and Premier Ford’s decision to terminate Ms. Ringuette’s employment was based on his and his campaign team’s belief that it would benefit him politically to, finally, oppose the Freedom Convoy.”

In total, Isabeau-Ringuette is seeking $450,000 from Ford, Wallace and the Crown over wrongful dismissal and for reputational damages along with $1.5 million from them and the Torstar over “invasion of privacy, public disclosure of private facts, damage to reputation, and emotional distress.” 

Charges have not yet been proven in a court of law.

Alberta takes Trudeau to court over use of Emergencies Act

By
Andrew Lawton
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This edition of The Andrew Lawton Show is coming to you from the Canada Strong and Free Conference in Ottawa!

A federal court has granted Alberta intervenor status to support the Canadian Civil Liberties Association and the Canadian Constitution Fund in their legal challenge of the Trudeau government’s use of the Emergencies Act to quash the peaceful Freedom Convoy. Alberta Premier Jason Kenney joins The Andrew Lawton Show to discuss Alberta’s case and share his views on the Freedom Convoy.

Plus, both outgoing and incoming presidents of the Canada Strong and Free Network, Troy Lanigan and Jamil Jivani, join the show to discuss the first Conservative leadership debate and the future of the conservative movement in Canada.

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Feds’ data sweep tracked family gatherings and grocery visits

By
Cosmin Dzsurdzsa
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The Public Health Agency of Canada’s (PHAC) secretive mass surveillance program included tracking family gatherings, visits to the grocery store and other travels of millions of Canadians. 

Officials had access to detailed information about people’s movements after scooping up data from 33 million mobile devices across Canada. 

Documents submitted to the Commons ethics committee reveal that the data analysis company BlueDot provided PHAC with anonymized reports so that public health officials could track travel patterns of Canadians. 

The program has been temporarily suspended as of February as committee members investigate whether the federal government violated Canadians’ privacy rights.

“Questions remain about the specifics of the data provided if Canadians’ rights were violated, and what advice the Liberal government was given,” said Conservative MP Damien Kurek. 

A report released by parliamentarians yesterday advised the federal government to notify Canadians whenever their data was being collected, and to give individuals the option to opt out of any such program.

PHAC has claimed that its analysis was “not about following individuals’ trips to a specific location, but rather in understanding whether the number of visits to specific locations have increased or decreased over time.”

“For example, point-of-interest data from BlueDot identifies the number of visits to grocery stores, parks, liquor stores and hospitals,” said a PHAC spokesperson. “All we receive is the location of the point of interest and the number of visits for a specific day.”

Surveillance also included border crossings and movement along border communities including Abbotsford, BC. 

“None of the information ever includes demographic information or specific identifiers or anything like a name, telephone number, email or address,” said BlueDot founder and CEO Kamran Khan.

“The data and analysis that we do provide are indicators: statistical summaries of anonymous device information, such as the total number of devices travelling between two cities.”

Experts like Ontario’s former privacy commissioner Ann Cavoukian have questioned the government’s claims saying that there has yet to be enough assurances that the data could not be reidentified to track individual Canadians.

Liberals and legacy media use Roe v. Wade to virtue signal

By
Candice Malcolm
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It’s Fake News Friday on The Candice Malcolm Show, coming to you from the fake news capital of Canada!

With Roe v. Wade set to be overturned in the US, the Liberals and the legacy media jumped at the opportunity to use the issue of abortion to demonize conservatives and virtue-signal – despite the fact that there are no abortion laws in Canada.

Plus, the Trudeau government celebrates World Press Freedom Day and touts the importance of an independent press. Meanwhile, the government continues to subsidize legacy media outlets and attempts to silence independent media in Canada.

True North’s Candice Malcolm and Andrew Lawton discuss these stories and more in-person at the Canada Strong and Free Conference in Ottawa.

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Liberal ministers welcome US women to have abortions in Canada

By
Noah Jarvis
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Liberal minister of families, children and social development Karina Gould has said that women visiting from the United States would be able to obtain abortions in Canada if the US Supreme Court overturns Roe v. Wade. 

In a leaked draft obtained by Politico and confirmed by US Chief Justice John Roberts, US Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito has written a draft majority opinion that would overturn the 1973 Roe v. Wade ruling that established a woman’s right to an abortion in the US.

In an interview with the CBC, Gould was asked if American women would be able to abort their children in Canada despite US state laws restricting the practice.

“I don’t see why we would not,” she said. “If they – people – come here and need access, certainly, you know, that’s a service that would be provided.”

Americans are already able to access Canada’s abortion services if they are covered under Canada’s health insurance programs – or by paying for private insurance or out-of-pocket.

Public safety minister Marco Mendicino alerted border patrol agents that Americans coming to Canada to have an abortion are welcome to undergo the procedure in Canada.

“I’ve engaged CBSA, my office is currently working with them to make sure there are clear guidelines so that women who may not be able to access healthcare including abortions are able to come to Canada,” he said.

If the case currently being heard before the US Supreme Court ends up overturning Roe v. Wade, 23 states have so-called ‘trigger laws’ that would enforce abortion restrictions upon Roe v. Wade’s reversal.

Abortion laws in Canada were struck down in 1988 after the R v. Morgentaler case. Canada has had no federal abortion laws since, despite attempts from the Brian Mulroney government to pass legislation in the late 1980s.

The Trudeau government has reaffirmed its support for abortion rights, asserting that the feds will protect women’s access to the procedure and will prevent a future government from passing legislation restricting abortions.

“The right to choose is a woman’s right and a woman’s right alone,” Trudeau said. “Every woman in Canada has a right to a safe and legal abortion. We’ll never back down from protecting and promoting women’s rights in Canada and around the world.”

In 2022, the Trudeau government withheld $140,000 in transfer funds from New Brunswick for not providing enough access to abortion within the province. 

In a leaked email, interim Conservative Party leader Candice Bergen told her caucus not to discuss Justice Alito’s draft opinion and asserted that the only ones bringing the abortion debate back up are the Liberals.

In the past, individual Conservative MPs have brought forth private members’ bills in efforts to create some restrictions around abortion, with the latest effort a June 2021 vote that garnered 81 votes and ultimately failed.

Conservative leadership candidates Scott Aitchison and Pierre Poilievre voted against the bill, with Leslyn Lewis voting for it.

Military panel recommends barring some mainstream religions from chaplaincy

By
Andrew Kozak
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A Department of National Defence (DND) advisory panel has recommended barring individuals from the military chaplaincy whose organized religion’s beliefs do not align with the department’s equality and social justice values.

The Minister of National Defence Advisory Panel on Systemic Racism and Discrimination’s Final Report for January 2022 reads that “(i)t is necessary to recognize that for some Canadians religion can be a source of suffering and generational trauma. This is especially true for many lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer and two-spirited members of Canadian society.”

The panel’s first of four recommendations – contained beneath the heading of “Re-Defining Chaplaincy” – is blunt.

“Do not consider for employment as spiritual guides or multi-faith representatives Chaplaincy applicants affiliated with religious groups whose values are not aligned with those of the Defence Team.” 

A chaplain is a member of the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) – as well as a member of a clergy – who provides CAF members with spiritual and personal guidance within the tradition of their own faiths.

The report excludes precise definitions for what constitutes acceptable religious leaders beyond vague rejections of “gender discrimination, anti-Indigenous discrimination, and racialized discrimination.” 

Although the report claims that it does not seek to “evaluate or categorize” religions it deems problematic, it names Christianity specifically, saying that “Christian religious leaders” are responsible for indigenous residential school programs.

“The Advisory Panel has observed that there are varying degrees of misogyny, sexism and discrimination woven into the philosophies and beliefs of some mainstream religions currently represented in the cadre of chaplains in the CAF,” the report reads. “This Advisory Panel does not seek to evaluate or categorize these religions in this report.”

The report bases its recommendation on claims that some “chaplains represent organized religions whose beliefs are not synonymous with those of a diverse and inclusive workplace.”

The advisory panel also writes that “some churches’ exclusion of women from their priesthoods violates principles of equality and social justice, as do sexist notions embedded in their religious dogmas.” 

“For example, some churches’ exclusion of women from their priesthoods violates principles of equality and social justice, as do sexist notions embedded in their religious dogmas,” the report reads.

 “In addition, certain faiths have strict tenets requiring conversion of those they deem to be “pagan,” or who belong to polytheistic religions. These faiths’ dogmas and practices conflict with the commitment of the Defence Team to value equality and inclusivity at every level of the workplace.”

The report even goes so far as to equate the exclusion of women from certain priesthoods with banning black people.

“It can be assumed that if a religion openly forbade a Black person to serve within its ranks, its members would be banned from the Chaplaincy in the CAF,” the report reads.

“The same scrutiny should be applied to those religions that forbid women to serve within their ranks or are against equal rights for same-sex couples.”

The report includes a recommendation to “review the selection process for chaplains to ensure that, in addition to listening skills, empathy and emotional intelligence, there is an intrinsic appreciation for diversity and a willingness to challenge one’s beliefs.”

“[The Defence Team] cannot justify hiring representatives of organizations who marginalize certain people or categorically refuse them from a position of leadership.”

Since 2021, the Canadian military has removed 13 senior military officials from active or former service due to accusations of sexual misconduct. 

Defence Minister Anita Anand has since apologized for that misconduct on behalf of the military.

Lewis questions if Poilievre is a genuine supporter of the Freedom Convoy

By
Andrew Lawton
-

True North’s Andrew Lawton caught up with Conservative leadership candidate Leslyn Lewis after her performance at the Canada Strong and Free Network Leadership Debate, in which she accused Pierre Poilievre of not being a genuine supporter of the Freedom Convoy.

Lawton asks Lewis to elaborate on her criticism of Poilievre, her staunch pro-life views, how she would lead the party through the abortion debate and much more.

BC releases proposed plan for “decolonized anti-racist” police force

By
Cosmin Dzsurdzsa
-

A special committee tasked with revamping policing in British Columbia has recommended the province legislate “decolonization and anti-racism” into policing. 

A 96-page report titled “Transforming Policing and Community Safety in British Columbia” was published by the Special Committee on Reforming the Police Act at the end of April. 

At the heart of the report is a plan to implement “a new Community Safety and Policing Act to govern the provision of policing and public safety services based on values of decolonization and anti-racism.”

“Throughout the consultation, Members heard clear evidence of systemic racism in policing as well as the colonial structure of police services,” the report reads. 

“To address these issues, Members recommend including anti-racism and decolonization as values in a new Community Safety and Policing Act, implementing mandatory and ongoing anti-racism and cultural competency training that is delivered in a meaningful way.”

The committee reportedly surveyed a number of organizations and thousands of individuals during its review.

“Decolonization” and “anti-racism” are concepts that operate on the assumption that organizations are systemically racist due to the influence of colonization and that they need to be actively cleansed via measures that promote diversity, equity and inclusion.

Anti-racist practices range from race-based hiring, assertions that people have white privilege and mandatory anti-racism training sessions. 

The report also touched on efforts to defund policing at a time despite receiving numerous submissions that highlighted a shortage in funds for public safety.

“A common theme in many submissions was defunding or reallocating funding from the police. Pivot Legal Society explained that defunding the police is not about dismantling safety, but rather about prioritizing the safety of marginalized communities in BC,” said the report’s authors. 

“Many individuals and organizations highlighted that police funding should be reallocated to social supports and evidence-based solutions to address these areas.”

Policing was also mentioned earlier this week during the B.C. government’s unveiling of its Anti-Racism Data Act. When asked why the act did not require police to record race-based data during their operations, Premier John Horgan responded that the updating of the province’s police act would go hand-in-hand with anti-racism legislation.

“I believe that they all come together, which speaks again to process,” said Horgan. “There are lots of things to pack together and unpack in the colonial history of British Columbia.”

The report comes at a time when the B.C. government and the City of Vancouver are scrambling to find solutions to rising violent crime and an unprecedented number of random attacks. Recently, police have estimated that Vancouver saw four random attacks per day. 

On Thursday, B.C. Attorney General David Eby announced an expert panel to investigate the matter. 

Vancouver also had to reinstate funding it had cut to its local police force during the 2021 Black Lives Matter protests. The city is currently weighing offloading refunding the police to residents in the form of a property tax hike. 

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