Winnipeg MP wants investigation into YFC Winnipeg’s summer job funding
The member of parliament for Winnipeg Centre wants an investigation into the federal funding for a Winnipeg organization that allegedly discriminated against the LGBTQ2S+ community.
Leah Gazan, who represents Winnipeg Centre, has written to Carla Qualtrough, Minister of Employment, Workforce Development and Disability Inclusion of Canada, asking to examine the Canada Summer Job Program (CSJ) funds that Youth for Christ Winnipeg (YFC) has received.
The letter stems from reports that the organization rejected hosting an LGBTQ2S+ skate night at the Edge Skatepark, and didn’t allow a skater to share a zine on the premises that highlighted LGBTQ2S+ skaters. The Edge Skatepark has since reduced its hours and limited itself to running youth skating programs.
“As the MP for Winnipeg Centre where YFC Winnipeg is located, I am concerned by reports that its policies have excluded 2SLGBTQ youth from accessing its recreational facilities, and prevented staff and volunteers from openly identifying as 2SLGBTQ,” Gazan wrote in the letter dated Nov. 29.
Gazan says in the past five years, YFC Winnipeg received $357,975 in funds from the federal government.
“Every CSJ applicant is required to attest that funding ‘must not be used to undermine or restrict the exercise of rights legally protected in Canada,’” Gazan writes, adding she is “concerned that federal money was used to weaken the exercise of these fundamental rights.”
A spokesperson for Employment and Social Development Canada says the department is aware of the complaints.
“The Canada Summer Jobs program requires all employers to agree to provide safe and inclusive work environments that respect the rights of an individual as outlined in the Charter. Employers found to potentially be in breach of this agreement are required to work with the Department to resolve the issue,” the spokesperson said in a statement.
The spokesperson added, “Young people deserve to work in safe, inclusive, and healthy work environments.”
CTV News Winnipeg reached out to YFC Winnipeg for comment multiple times, but the organization has not responded.
The organization previously issued a statement in November about the skatepark controversy, saying, “All young people are welcomed and valued at Youth for Christ | Youth Unlimited (YFC) regardless of religious belief, people group, or sexual orientation.”
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
BREAKING Appeals court overturns Harvey Weinstein's 2020 rape conviction from landmark trial
New York’s highest court on Thursday overturned Harvey Weinstein’s 2020 rape conviction, finding the judge at the landmark #MeToo trial prejudiced the ex-movie mogul with improper rulings, including a decision to let women testify about allegations that weren’t part of the case.
BREAKING Honda to get up to $5B in govt help for EV battery, assembly plants
Honda is set to build an electric vehicle battery plant next to its Alliston, Ont., assembly plant, which it is retooling to produce fully electric vehicles, all part of a $15-billion project that is expected to include up to $5 billion in public money.
1 arrested in northern Alberta during public shelter order
Residents of John D'Or Prairie, a community on the Little Red River Cree Nation in northern Alberta, were told to take shelter Thursday morning during a police operation.
Secret $70M Lotto Max winners break their silence
During a special winner celebration near their hometown, Doug and Enid shared the story of how they discovered they were holding a Lotto Max ticket worth $70 million and how they kept this huge secret for so long.
Remains from a mother-daughter cold case were found nearly 24 years later, after a deathbed confession from the suspect
A West Virginia father is getting some sense of closure after authorities found the remains of his young daughter and her mother following a deathbed confession from the man believed to have fatally shot them nearly two decades ago.
Monthly earnings rise, payroll employment falls: jobs report
The number of vacant jobs in Canada increased in February, while monthly payroll employment decreased in food services, manufacturing, and retail trade, among other sectors.
First in Canada procedure performed at London, Ont. hospital
A London man has become the first person in Canada to receive a robotic assisted surgery on his spine. Dave Myeh suffered from debilitating, chronic back pain that led to sciatica in his right now and extreme pain in his lower back.
Doctors say capital gains tax changes will jeopardize their retirement. Is that true?
The Canadian Medical Association asserts the Liberals' proposed changes to capital gains taxation will put doctors' retirement savings in jeopardy, but some financial experts insist incorporated professionals are not as doomed as they say they are.
Something in the water? Canadian family latest to spot elusive 'Loch Ness Monster'
For centuries, people have wondered what, if anything, might be lurking beneath the surface of Loch Ness in Scotland. When Canadian couple Parry Malm and Shannon Wiseman visited the Scottish highlands earlier this month with their two children, they didn’t expect to become part of the mystery.