A group promoting political engagement for new immigrants has endorsed several Coquitlam, Port Moody and Port Coquitlam candidates, and their positions against cannabis retail outlets or the need for more policing and tight rules after legalization in their cities could be the reason why.
But the endorsements were later reproduced by an anti-SOGI group, the Canadian Council on Faith and Family, on a Facebook post that has since been taken down after one Coquitlam candidate complained.
(The provincially mandated SOGI 123 is a resource for teachers who want to raise the issue of gender identity in the classroom. It is one of a number of resources that may be used to teach the new physical education and health curriculum.)
Several of the endorsed candidates contacted by The Tri-City News said they were unhappy about being labeled by inference as anti-SOGI.
“I answered a question at the [Tri-Cities] Chamber of Commerce meeting about marijuana, saying I support banning it for retail sale in Coquitlam. This group reached out to me to see if I was of that opinion,” said Coquitlam council candidate Paul Lambert, who said the Let’s Vote Association endorsements were lifted by the anti-SOGI group and done without his permission.
“I am definitely not an anti-SOGI candidate,” said Lambert, who said he is OK with being on a Let’s Vote Association list as long as people understand it’s because of his position on retail cannabis and not on other issues the conservative group supports.
Mayor Richard Stewart expressed concern about being on the anti-SOGI Facebook post, saying he supports SOGI, noting: “Any effort to reduce stigma for marginalized students, and to help students feel welcome and included, is very important.”
But it’s the endorsement at www.letsvote.ca that has mystified some candidates, some of whom are distancing themselves from the organization because of its conservative views.
The Tri-City News has reached out to the organization via an intermediary to ask why they endorsed some candidates and not others and has not yet received a response.
But two other candidates — one from Coquitlam, and one from Port Moody — said it’s possible they also were endorsed because they expressed concerns about retail cannabis at all-candidates meet and greet sessions.
Ben Craig, who was endorsed by the Let’s Vote organization, said, “I’m aligned with them on the cannabis issue."
Teri Towner, a Coquitlam candidate and incumbent, also said she had some concerns about legal cannabis and expressed them to someone at a candidate meet-and-greet, which likely resulted in her endorsement. Port Moody Coun. Zoe Royer, who's running for re-election, said she stated in a survey that while she supports legalization, she isn’t in favour of retail outlets in PoMo.
But it’s the group’s conservative positions that have some candidates concerned enough to decline the endorsement.
On its website, the group states that among its aims are “to voice Canadians concerns about national security, freedom of speech, freedom of religion, traditional family values, children’s interests, pro-life issues.”
Royer said she was not happy about being endorsed on either the anti-SOGI Facebook page and the Let’s Vote group’s website while PoMo Coun. Barbara Junker also expressed concerns about the endorsements.
"I have not sought either endorsement and reject both endorsements. I support the SOGI initiative and a respectful, inclusive school environment where all children can feel safe,” Junker stated in an email to The Tri-City News.
After reviewing the Let’s Vote Association’s website, Coquitlam Coun. Craig Hodge also expressed concerns, although he thought his advocacy for more policing, especially after cannabis legalization, may have been the reason for the endorsement.
“I did not seek their endorsement or respond to their survey. I have not even answered a question about SOGI during the campaign and I’ve asked that my name be removed from their website as some of the positions they have taken do not align with the values I hold,” Hodge said.
Vince Donnelly, a Port Coquitlam city council candidate, was also on the list and said he has been emailed as well about SOGI and said he told the individual he believed that it is important for all children to be taught kindness and inclusivity of all people but it’s not a city issue.
Coquitlam Coun. Bred Asmundson, who was also on the list, had his name taken off the list.
In fact, by Thursday, Oct. 18, the only Coquitlam councillors still on the list were Ben Craig and Paul Lambert, Hui Wang for Coquitlam school trustee and Vince Donnelly who is running for council in Port Coquitlam. There were no endorsed candidates in Port Moody because both Junker and Royer had their name taken off the list.
