Athée Canadien
No school for you
By Zak
A group of parents in small town Morinville, Alberta are stuck without a public school as the lone publicly funded Catholic school rejected their request to provide a secular option.
Concerned parent and now secular evangelist Donna Hunter explains:
“It’s disappointing because this is exactly what we were told the first day I came to them,” Hunter said after Monday night’s meeting, adding she felt she and her group were put through a song and dance of presenting to the board and waiting for their decision. “All the news people were saying they’re not telling us what they’re doing – it’s a big reveal. For them to come back and tell me basically the same thing they told me on day one: We’re Catholic. We are who we are. We’re not going to be anything else. Exempt your child using Section 50 [of the Alberta School Act]. Go somewhere else. There’s no surprises here.”
I side with the Catholic schools on this one. They’re in the business of promoting their silly religion and are fully entitled to receive full funding according to the law. There is little we can do about it other than using it as another example why we need to abolish the separate school system. Our opponents are our provincial and federal governments who have the power to make these changes, not the individual boards who are only concerned about their own interests.
| Print article | This entry was posted by Zak on January 20, 2011 at 10:00 am, and is filed under News. Follow any responses to this post through RSS 2.0. Both comments and pings are currently closed. |
Comments are closed.
about 1 year ago
Isn’t it part of the Charter that they have to provide a Catholic or public school if there’s a demand for it – just like English and French schools?
about 1 year ago
Not for all provinces, only ones that had it at confederation but haven’t opted out since (like Manitoba and Newfoundland). Alberta, Saskatchewan and Ontario are the only provinces with this option remaining.
The interesting blip in Morinville is that the public school is the Catholic school since the population was predominantly French-Catholic when the board was founded. A separate protestant board formed for the St. Albert district, but Morinville is too small to sustain competing primary schools.
about 1 year ago
I wouldn’t side with the Catholic church, it sets a bad precedent. Yes there logic is sound in that there premises are crap – i.e. we’re a bunch of ignorant jerks and if you want to get an education, which happens to be the only free, public education in town, you’ll have to be Catholic too.
What’s worse in that article is that the Catholics are actively campaigning to expand their right to discriminate. They want amendments to the School and Human Rights Acts so that Catholic schools not just separate, but special too. The only good that could come of this is people start to realize what a breeding ground for intolerance the separate school system is.
I hope the disenfranchised parents file a human rights complaint. The UN has already deemed Canada’s separate school system as discriminatory and if we can get it established in Canadian law we can make some steps to getting the paperwork together (a minor constitutional amendment) to end their reign.
about 1 year ago
I lived in the Morinville area for 7 years and I share the frustration for these parents.
I now live in the public school division next to it, my childeren are now of school age and I’m here to tell you it is not much better there. My children are exposed to daily prayers and christian education sessions in grade five. I experienced the same things as Donna Hunter when my daughter came home from school telling me all about god, and the things that he created.
I have complained to the school division, parent council, and written letter to the MLA and the education minister. It all falls on deaf ears. All of our school board trustees are evangical christians and they just laugh me right out of the meeting.
about 1 year ago
School prayer is technically legal in Alberta since no Human Rights complaint has gotten it banned yet. Someone eventually needs to stand up, since the alternative is opting your child out (i.e. they get to sit in the hall).
about 1 year ago
http://www.separateschooleducation.ca/petition.php
There is a petition currently out to have the Alberta government abolish the separate school system.