LGBT+

Burnaby North–Seymour candidate Heather Leung kicked off Conservative slate for past homophobic remarks

by Charlie Smith on October 5th, 2019 at 7:09 AM
    1 of 1 2 of 1

      An activist with the Christian group Parents Voice can no longer call herself a Conservative candidate.

      The party announced last night that Heather Leung won't carry its banner in Burnaby North–Seymour after video emerged of her calling the LGBT community "perverted" and claiming that homosexuals "recruit children".

      The deadline has passed for Leung's name to be removed from the ballot, so she will remain a candidate; she just can't call herself a "Conservative".

      Her ouster came not long after NDP candidate Svend Robinson called on Conservative Leader Andrew Scheer to fire Leung.

      After Leung was bounced from the ticket, Robinson tweeted "Good riddance."

      Scheer has claimed in the past that his party does not discriminate against people based on their sexual orientation.

      However, he has come under fire for boycotting Pride events ever since he was elected as a Regina-area MP in 2004.

      Leung was nominated in May.

      At that time, Burnaby Now reported that she had been a "vocal opponent in 2011 of a school board policy designed to prevent discrimination against gay, lesbian and queer staff and students in Burnaby schools".

      The community paper also reproduced one of her quotes from 2011 about how the policy was "a deliberate and systemic strategy to indoctrinate our children with a controversial moral teaching".

      Later in May, the Burnaby Now reported that Leung had taken down her Facebook page, in which she declared her opposition to abortion and medically assisted suicide.

      The Vancouver Sun posted a video of Leung supporting conversion therapy for gays and lesbians.

      "This leads young people to suicide and attempted suicide, and it's devastating," the NDP's Robinson told CBC News.

      Leung also came under criticism last month when her campaign tweeted a fake endorsement by former CBC TV host Rick Mercer.

      In the meantime, Scheer has been facing intense criticism from social conservatives in the People's Party of Canada. 

      Laura Lynn Tyler Thompson, a TV evangelist and the PPC candidate in Red Deer, has used her Twitter feed to draw attention to Scheer's stance on abortion.

      Tyler Thompson is a former PPC candidate and former school board candidate in Burnaby.

      She has a significant following among Burnaby social conservatives for her vocal opposition to the trans-friendly SOGI 123 curriculum in B.C. schools.

       

      Comments