The drama never seems to end as the story at Centre for Inquiry Canada takes on a few new twists. For those looking to catch up, check out my first long post on the situation, followed by a few resignations, and finally my thoughts on where freethought can head in Canada.
Tag Archives: Justin Trottier
CFI Canada: Half-truths and scandal
There must be something with activist freethinkers where we just love scandal and controversy. Everything from crackers and gelato to elevators and coup d’etats wins over praise and scorn from across the blogosphere. Perhaps its just the nature of blogs or just people, but there’s nothing entirely rational about our need to gossip over every issue. We also love sticking –gate on everything, which is an entirely different rant.
This isn’t to say that every issue is pedantic and unworthy of discussion. Some controversy brings out deeper issues, whether it’s anti-atheist bigotry (and how we deal with it) or our own in-group diversity issues.
I’ve been trying to keep myself from stirring more controversy with CFI Canada over the past year or more, but now it’s just too much and I need to internet rage, so please indulge me (or don’t, there’s many other wonderful sites on the web).
Change at the top
Big news from CFI Canada today:
To All CFI Canada Friends and Supporters,
The Board of Directors of Centre for Inquiry Canada is pleased to announce the appointment of Derek Pert as National Executive Director, effective immediately. We are excited to have Derek continue the outstanding work he has done in facilitating a new strategic plan and organizing the move to our new headquarters.
The Board would also like to announce that Justin Trottier, the former National Executive Director, is leaving CFI Canada to pursue other interests. We thank Justin for his commitment to the organization and for providing a voice for secularism and reason in Canada. We wish him success in future endeavours.
Carol Parlow MD, FRCPC
Chair, Board of Directors of CFI Canada
Justin Trottier had taken leave of his position as CFI Canada Executive Director to stand as a candidate for the Green Party of Ontario in the upcoming provincial election. Now it looks like that leave has been made permanent. It’s really hard to tell from this message whether the feelings were mutual.
Many volunteers, including myself, have grumbled at some of Trottier’s more controversial positions, but CFI Canada wouldn’t be where it is today without him. After great success with the University of Toronto Secular Alliance, Trottier founded CFI Ontario and pushed it onto the national stage. His determination has forced the much older (both in terms of length of existence and demographics) humanist organizations that they’ll need to step up their games to continue. CFI’s rapid expansion put pressure on many local humanist groups, with some dividing and others folding into new CFI branches.
It’s not clear yet what direction Derek Pert will take CFI Canada over the next few years. I haven’t met him personally yet, but look forward to some new ideas from him.