A Canadian town is facing a fine by the provincial government for refusing to fly a rainbow flag as part of “Pride Month” celebrations promoting homosexuality and other forms of sexual deviancy.
As reported by Fox News, the town of Emo in Ontario refused to display the “LGBTQ2 Rainbow Flag” outside its municipal building back in June. As a result, the town of about 1,300, located near the border with Minnesota, is being threatened with a fine of $10,000 by the Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario, as this refusal was determined to be in violation of the Ontario Human Rights Code.
In addition to the fine, Emo city officials have been given a mandate to undergo “human rights” training.
The small town first faced targeted harassment by the pro-LGBTQ crowd in 2020, when a far-left group called Borderland Pride demanded that Emo declare June to be “Pride Month.” Their demands included a draft proclamation that would feature such statements as “pride is necessary to show community support and belonging for LGBTQ2 individuals,” and “the diversity of sexual orientation, gender identity, and gender expression represents a positive contribution to society.”
The group also demanded that Emo fly an “LGBTQ2 rainbow flag for a week of your choosing,” even though the town has no official flag pole.
These demands were rejected by a 3-2 margin at the Emo township council meeting, with Mayor Harold McQuaker declaring that it would not be fair to fly such a flag, since there was “no flag being flown for the other side of the coin… there’s no flags being flown for the straight people.”
The town’s refusal was determined by the Human Rights Tribunal to be “demeaning and disparaging of the LGBTQ2 community, of which Borderland Pride is a member, and therefore constituted discrimination under the Code.”
Borderland Pride demanded that the town itself be given a $15,000 fine, plus an additional $10,000 fine for each of the three council members who voted against the group’s demands. The tribunal ultimately settled on a single $10,000 fine for the whole town, and an additional $5,000 fine for Mayor McQuaker himself. McQuaker, along with the town’s chief administrative officer, was ordered to undergo an online “Human Rights 101” course and “provide proof of completion… to Borderland Pride within 30 days.”