Ellen Woodsworth

Ellen Woodsworth is one of seven gay and lesbian elected officials from all levels of government who have signed a letter of support for Lisa Reimer, a music teacher at Little Fower Academy in Vancouver, who was told to stay away from the Catholic School after it became known she was a lesbian parent. The letter, sent to Margaret MacDiarmid, B.C. Minister of Education, is reprinted in full below.

May 28, 2010

Hon. Dr. Margaret MacDiarmid
Minister of Education, Early Learning and Literacy
Room 346 – Parliament Buildings
Victoria, BC V8V 1X4

Dear Minister MacDiarmid,
 
We are writing with regard to the situation of teacher Lisa Reimer and her employer, Little Flower Academy of Vancouver. 

As gay and lesbian elected officials we are very concerned about the issues raised by Ms Reimer’s case. In a diverse society like ours it is imperative that basic human rights standards are upheld standards which respect the equality of lesbian members of our communities and which protect religious freedoms.  It is also imperative that basic labour laws be upheld. 

In our opinion, this is not a situation where one right can be seen as trumping another. We believe that publicly funded institutions must adhere to the laws of the community, province and nation.  There must be a careful delineation of how the question of religious freedom, and protection from discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation, interact. 

Decisions have been made which allow Catholic schools to receive public funding.  Decisions have also been made that to discriminate against gay and lesbian people is unacceptable in our society.  It is incumbent upon political leaders to ensure that Catholic schools, as recipients of public funding, meet the obligation of respecting the full human rights of lesbian and gay people, including those they employ. 

At the same time, lesbian and gay people who chose to sign contracts to work as teachers for a Catholic school must respect the values of those institutions in all aspects of their conduct as teachers.  We do not believe that a teacher,
living her life as a lesbian, in any way interferes with a Catholic school’s ability to teach Catholic values.  

Being lesbian should not be allowed to be used as a barrier to employment in a publicly funded school in British Columbia.  Lesbian and gay teachers should not be subject to sanction or discipline by a publicly funded school for living their lives.

We hope that you will intervene with actions that clarify this situation and protect the full equality of lesbian and gay British Columbians. We believe that it is important that elected representatives, particularly those in leadership positions in government, address this issue.  Leadership is required to make it clear that all people, regardless of sexual orientation, gender identity, religion, race, or sex are free to live, work, and realize their potential without discrimination or prejudice. 

We look forward to your action and your reply.

Sincerely yours,

Libby Davies, MP                                                  Spencer Chandra Herbert, MLA
Vancouver East                                                          Vancouver-West End           

Mable Elmore, MLA                                             Bill Siksay, MP
Vancouver-Kensington                                              Burnaby Douglas

Nicholas Simons, MLA                                       Tim Stevenson, Councillor
Powell River-Sunshine Coast                                   City of Vancouver 

Ellen Woodsworth, Councillor
City of Vancouver

Ellen and Ms. Baker at the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding, May 17, 2010. photo by Colin Fenby

MOU

Ellen was among the members of Council to witness the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding between the City of Vancouver and the Squamish Nation. Signed on May 17, 2010 by Squamish Chief Gabby Jacobs and Vancouver Mayor Gregor Robertson, the memorandum outlines the framework in which the two governments can adjudicate on issues of mutual interest, such as tourism, governance and environmental protection.

At next week’s regular council meeting on Tuesday, May 18, 2010, Ellen will be putting forth a motion that the City of Vancouver support Bill C-304: Homelessness and Housing. The bill supports a national housing strategy in Canada.

To read Ellen’s motion, click to download a PDF version.

To view the agenda for  next week’s council meeting, go to the City of Vancouver website.

EVENT

Join Ellen this weekend at this important forum.

The housing crisis affects all of us – young people and families desperately in need of affordable rentals; people who work in Vancouver but can’t afford to buy a house here; our homeless and underhoused neighbours looking for social housing that doesn’t exist.

COPE is sponsoring a day-long discussion about SOLUTIONS to these problems. What can city government do? What can neighbourhoods do? What can non-profits do? What should we expect from the private sector? What about co-ops? What are the new and creative SOLUTIONS to the housing crisis? Our panelists include:

• Christine Ackermann – West End Residents Association
• Norm Dooley – Riley Park South Cambie Visioning Committee
• Lorraine Copas – SPARC
• David Eby – BC Civil Liberties Association
• Brent Granby – West End Residents Association
• Darren Kitchen – BC Co-operative Housing Association
• Am Johal – Impact on Communities Coalition
• Linus Lam – Architecture for Humanity – Vancouver
• Ian Mass – COPE
• Monte Paulsen – the Tyee.ca
• Alvin Singh – COPE
• Laura Stannard – Citywide Housing Coalition
• Jean Swanson – Carnegie Community Action Project
• Sally Teich — East Fraserlands Committee

If you have ideas you’d like to share, if you’re interested in the future of Vancouver, if you want to learn, if you want to talk about SOLUTIONS, then join us – Saturday, May 8 – 9:30 AM – 3:30 PM, 411 Seniors’ Centre, 411 Dunsmuir St.

For more information, email cope@cope.bc.ca.

Agenda

9:30 – Welcome – Alvin Singh – COPE External Chair
9:40 – Introductory Remarks – The Housing Crisis in Vancouver – the City and Solutions – David Chudnovsky – COPE Internal Chair
10:00 – Panels 1-4 (All will be repeated in the afternoon.)

• Affordable Rental Solutions – Monte Paulsen, Christine Ackermann, Laura Stannard, Alvin Singh
• Affordable Home Purchase/Co-op Solutions – Ian Mass, Darren Kitchen, representative of Terra Housing
• Social Housing and Homelessness Solutions – David Eby, Linus Lam, Lorraine Copas, Am Johal
• Organizing Communities for Housing Solutions – Brent Granby, Norm Dooley, Jean Swanson, Sally Teich

11:45 – Plenary Reconvenes
12:00 – Lunch
1:15 – Panels 1-4 repeated
3:00 – Plenary reconvenes and conclusion
3:30 – Adjourn