EMO, Ontario (LifeSiteNews) —The Ontario Human Rights Tribunal has fined Emo Township for refusing to fly the “Pride Flag” in June 2020.
In a November 20 decision, the Ontario Human Rights Tribunal awarded Borderland Pride, a local LGBT activist group, $15,000 from Emo Township and Emo mayor Harold McQuaker after the small Ontario town refused to bend to the demands of LGBT activists and celebrate June as “pride” month.
“I find that $15,000 is an appropriate level of compensation for Borderland Pride’s injury to dignity, feelings and self-respect,” Ontario adjudicator Karen Dawson wrote in her decision.
The $15,000 is divided into $10,000 paid by Emo Township and $5,000 paid by McQuaker himself to Borderland Pride.
Additionally, the tribunal ordered McQuaker and the Chief Administrative Officer of the municipality to complete a “Human Rights 101” training course offered by the Ontario Human Rights Commission within 30 days.
“There’s no flags being flown for the straight people,” McQuake had told the Emo council in 2020.
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At the 2020 meeting, the town council had voted 3-2 against proclaiming June as “Pride” month and flying LGBT flags from municipal buildings.
Shortly after the motion was voted down, the Borderland Pride filed a human rights complaint, demanding the town apologize for their decision, proclaim June as “Pride” month, and fly the LGBT flag for one week.
In April 2024, Borderland Pride offered to drop the case if the town agreed to the previous demands.
“This is a good deal. You should take it,” Borderland Pride’s letter to Emo stated. “The alternative is to continue to waste taxpayer money fighting a losing battle in defence of bigotry and hate.”
However, the township chose to reject the proposal, instead going ahead with the hearing.
Emo Township’s population was recorded in 2021 at 1,204.
The town of Emo is not the only Canadian town to resist LGBT ideological demands. In February, residents of Westlock, Alberta, a small town of about 4,800 people, voted in favor of a bylaw to prohibit flying non-governmental flags from municipal flagpoles and painting crosswalks with any pattern other than the usual, white-striped pattern.