EDMONTON — Alberta’s law banning schools from telling parents when their children join a gay-straight alliance faces its first legal challenge.
A Court of Queen’s Bench judge in Medicine Hat is to hear arguments Wednesday filed on behalf of 25 faith-based schools and others to put the law on hold pending a constitutional challenge.
Education Minister David Eggen says he wants the issue cleared up as soon as possible, because legal wrangling leads to confusion and concern on the part of students.
“Uncertainty created by a court case like this … seeks to counter a lot of the progress that we’ve made to create safe and caring environments for kids and I find that pretty disturbing,” Eggen said in an interview.
The lawsuit was filed in April in response to a law passed by Premier Rachel Notley’s government late last year.
Leading the legal challenge is the Justice Centre for Constitutional Freedoms. The group argues in court documents that keeping parents out of the loop violates multiple charter freedoms, including freedom of religion and expression.
It also says gay-straight alliances are “ideological sex clubs” where graphic information on gay sex is available.
The group also says the law has “stripped parents of the ability to know fully where their children are, who they are involved with, and what they may be encouraged to think or do.”
Schools have until the end of June to file information to the government showing they are complying with the new legislation.
The lawsuit asks the judge to put that order on hold pending the full airing of concerns over the law’s constitutionality.
Full article: Calgary Herald