OTTAWA, June 13, 2019 (LifeSiteNews) — Canada’s Conservative leader Andrew Scheer has drawn criticism from liberal media and political rivals because he won’t be marching in the pro-homosexual Toronto “Pride” Parade this summer.
Scheer, a Catholic father of five and member of Parliament for Regina, has never attended any “Pride” events, and his office told CTV News he has no plans to do so this year.
The news provoked consternation among a panel of journalists on CTV’s Question Period hosted by Evan Solomon.
“If you're auditioning to be the Prime Minister of this country, show up and march.” The scrum weighs in on @AndrewScheer's decision not to march in pride parades. #ctvqp #cdnpoli pic.twitter.com/YYeclwAZ8N
— CTV'S QUESTION PERIOD (@ctvqp) June 9, 2019
“Let’s not try to make this look like anything else,” said CTV’s parliamentary bureau chief Joyce Napier. “He’s not marching in the Pride. It is clear what the message is to the community. And that’s it. It’s not even subtle.”
Solomon avowed that given the recent arrest of a serial killer in Toronto’s “gay” village, “this is a very poignant issue.”
Toronto Star reporter Tonda MacCharles gravely agreed.
“This is a statement that means a lot to LGBTQ people,” she said.
“It speaks to them. It reinforces and affirms their value as human beings, and their equal value. And I’m sorry, if you’re auditioning to be the prime minister of this country, show up and march.”
A spokesman for Liberal Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Canada’s first sitting prime minister to march in a “Pride” parade, likewise pilloried Scheer.
“By refusing to attend Pride events, Andrew Scheer is showing his true colours and is turning his back on the LGBTQ2 community,” PMO spokesman Pascuzzo told CTV News.
“Pride is a celebration of millions of Canadians, a commitment to advancing rights, and a reminder that we need to take further steps to achieve true equality… it is clear that Andrew Scheer and the Conservative Party of Canada are stuck in the past,” added Pascuzzo.
READ: Andrew Scheer must stop betraying social conservatives and his Catholic faith
Scheer’s spokesman Daniel Schow defended the Tory leader’s decision by stating there are other ways to support the “LGBTQ community.”
“Canada’s Conservatives have a proud history of fighting for the rights and protection of all Canadians, including those in the LGBTQ community, at home and abroad,” he told the National Post.
“There are many ways to support these communities, and it is vital that the rights of all Canadians are protected regardless of race, gender or sexual preference,” said Schow.
Deputy Conservative leader Lisa Raitt likewise defended Scheer on CTV’s Power Play.
“There’s going to be lots of our members who are going to go to parades in their communities and that’s what they choose to do,” said Raitt, who will attend pro-homosexual events this summer.
“Andrew’s not going but it has nothing to do with whether or not he’s going to stand up for the human rights of all humans,” added Raitt.
Campaign Life Coalition, Canada’s national pro-life, pro-family political lobbying group and largest pro-life association, lauded Scheer for his decision.
“We’re relieved that Andrew will not be giving his stamp of approval to the homosexual pride parade by marching. The fact of the matter is that homosexuality is not a conservative value,” said Campaign Life’s director of political operations, Jack Fonseca.
“Traditional marriage and the nuclear family, as the bedrock of society, is a conservative value. For that reason, no true conservative should ever march in a homosexual pride parade. Doing so makes one a liberal, not a conservative,” he told LifeSiteNews.
“Andrew should prohibit all Conservative candidates from insulting the party’s grassroots base by participating in this controversial and oftentimes lewd event.”
Fonseca also pointed to the notorious diversity of displays routinely featured in “Pride” parades.
“Why would any self-respecting political leader in his right mind want to marching in an event that features buck naked men, simulated sex acts, depictions of sexual bondage and sado-masochism?” he asked.
“If you march there, you lend your moral support to ALL of those perversions, including the violent ones,” added Fonseca.
Jeff Gunnarson, Campaign Life Coalition president, also praised Scheer for not attending “Pride” events.
“No politician needs to follow the bullying tactics of the LGBTQ lobby within and without the party. It is incumbent upon all elected officials to govern according to their well-informed conscience and to maintain their principles on faith and morality,” Gunnarson said.
But at the same time, Campaign Life “doesn’t like to see the Conservative Party of Canada veering toward total support of the LGBTQ lobby, something Andrew Scheer appears to be endorsing,” he told LifeSiteNews.
Pandering to the homosexual lobby is indefensible and can only end in disaster, Gunnarson said.
“It may be that the federal and some provincial conservative parties, through their politically correct and amoral platforms, will implode before realizing they have been duped by a culture, an ideology that neither supports them nor votes for them,” he said.