Manitoba trustee suspended over posts targeting LGBTQ2S+ community, division says
A Manitoba school trustee has been suspended over social media posts the division says targeted the LGBTQ2S+ community.
Trustee Francine Champagne, who represents Ward 1 in the Louis Riel School Division (LRSD), has been suspended for three months, a division spokesperson confirmed.
"Her suspension is due to breaching the Board Code of Conduct, specific to social media use and disregarding Policy AC: Respect for Human Diversity," Emmalee Blackadar, the communications manager for the division, said in an email to CTV News.
"Trustee Champagne posted harmful comments on social media targeting the 2SLGBTQIA+ community."
Sandy Nemeth, the chair of the LRSD Board of Trustees, told CTV News she was concerned after finding out about the posts, saying they had a 'strong transphobic sentiment' and were disrespectful to the LGBTQ2S+ community.
Nemeth said she brought her concerns to the board.
"They are just not who we are in Louis Riel and certainly not who we are as a board," Nemeth said.
CTV News has not been able to view the posts in question, which appear to have since been deleted.
Champagne was one of two trustees elected in the ward during the most recent 2022 election. She received 2,817 votes.
Champagne's suspension will last for three months and is the strongest sanction possible under the Manitoba Public Schools Act. Nemeth said following the suspension, Champagne will resume her full duties.
However, part of a motion passed by the board Tuesday evening includes a commitment to professional learning for all members of the board.
"Over time we hope she's had a chance to reflect and think about how she's going to return to her duties and return to the community – and that is going to involve us having some conversations around respect for human diversity and what that looks like in Louis Riel," Nemeth said.
Nemeth said the board understood that whatever their decision was – it would send a message to the community.
"What we want everyone to take away is that we recognize the value of every student, staff member, teacher, administrator, community member to feel that when they are working and learning in LRSD, or enter one of our buildings, that they are welcomed, they are valued, they are respected, (and) we will care for them and support them," she said.
"It doesn't matter who they are or how they identify. They are people and human beings first."
CTV News has reached out to Champagne for comment, but has yet to hear back.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Western University researchers unlock potential 'cure' for ALS
New research out of London, Ont.'s Western University is shedding light on a potential cure for ALS, in which the targeting of the interaction between two proteins can halt or fully reverse the disease's progression.
Police release 3D images of young child found in an Ontario river two years ago
Police have released a three-dimensional image of a young child whose remains were discovered in the Grand River in Dunnville, Ont. almost two years ago.
B.C. brings in law on name changes on day that child killer's new identity revealed
The BC NDP have tabled legislation aimed at stopping people who have committed certain heinous acts from changing their names.
Kamala Harris drops F-bomb during White House live-stream
U.S. Vice-President Kamala Harris used a profanity on Monday while offering advice to young Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders about how to break through barriers.
B.C. man fighting for refund after finding someone living at Whistler vacation rental
Edwin Mostered spent thousands of dollars booking a vacation home in Whistler, B.C., for a group skiing trip earlier this year – or so he thought.
Avs forward Valeri Nichushkin suspended at least six months
Colorado Avalanche forward Valeri Nichushkin was suspended for at least six months without pay and placed in Stage 3 of the league's player assistance program.
Collapsed Baltimore bridge span comes down with a boom after crews set off chain of explosives
Crews conducted a controlled demolition Monday to break down the largest remaining span of the collapsed Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore.
Security video caught admitted serial killer disposing of bodies in Winnipeg garbage bins
Security video caught admitted serial killer Jeremy Skibicki on multiple late-night outings, disposing of body parts in nearby garbage bins and dumpsters in the middle of the night.
Mortgage companies could intensify the next recession, U.S. officials warn
U.S. officials worry the next recession could be intensified by a cascading series of failures in the mortgage industry caused by crashing home prices, frozen financial markets and soaring delinquencies.