Wednesday December 8th:
Watch this week’s Quick Update video for more analysis, review, and encouragement about what happened with Bill C-4 this past week.
UPDATE: Senate passes Bill C-4 by unanimous Opposition motion.
Tuesday December 7th, the Senate passed Bill C-4 unanimously, like in the House of Commons, by an opposition motion by Conservative Senator Leo Housakos.
Director of Law and Policy André Schutten and Director of Advocacy Mike Schouten recorded a livestream just after the decision. You can watch their reactions below.
UPDATE: Tuesday December 7th
Yesterday we asked you to send an email to Senators in your province asking them to debate and amend Bill C-4. The goal we set was 2400 emails in a span of 24 hours. Thanks to everyone who has already responded to this call to action! This morning we are closing in on 1000 emails and would love to see that number increase throughout the day!
Will you join us in a last push?
The Senate meets today at 2 pm EST to discuss Bill C-4. Wouldn’t it be great if their inboxes were flooded with emails from concerned Canadians. Let’s pray that with our messages in their minds, they enter the chamber today with the intent of taking a long hard look at this legislation.
It was only a few days ago that we shared the disappointing news that Bill C-4 (conversion therapy ban) had been fast-tracked through the House of Commons at the instigation of Conservative Party. This news really hurt as it was just a few months ago that well over half of their caucus voted against this terrible legislation.
The bill is now in the Senate, so by God’s grace we still have an opportunity to encourage amendments that make it less bad.
But, it appears that the Senate is also prepared to fast-track Bill C-4! Things are happening incredibly quickly and while it is frustrating that parliamentary procedure seems to have gone by the wayside, there still is a small window for us to try and make a difference.
Will you commit to sending an email to the Senators in your province? We are hoping to have at least 2400 emails reach the Senate within the next 24 hours – 100 emails an hour for 24 hours. With God’s blessing and your help we can do this!
ARPA’s EasyMail system is the tool we are using to achieve this goal. As the name suggests, it’s super easy and you can begin by clicking the button below.
Please also take a moment to pray:
Pray:
- That there would be time given for individuals and organizations to speak to the Senate and Committee about the harms of this legislation
- That good amendments to the bill would be considered
- That this legislation would fail to pass
- That if it does pass that the legislation would properly define converision therapy
Yesterday, the Conservative party introduced a motion to unanimously pass Bill C-4 (conversion therapy bans) through the House of Commons. The motion carried without even one MP having the courage to object. As André mentioned in the video we released last night, we are extremely disappointed with this development. After reviewing the situation with the team this morning, we believe that those who need to hear from you are the ones who had the courage in June to vote against this bill. There were only 5 sitting days between the vote in June on Bill C-6 and the introduction of C-4 in November. Yet the result could not be more different. Yesterday’s developments are extremely concerning because the decision of these MPs (who had already voted against this bill in June) to not do anything will have negative impacts on children and adults who are struggling with their gender and sexuality. This was a politically crass decision that has real-world consequences for vulnerable people. What can you do? We are encouraging all ARPA supporters to commit to phoning and writing a good old-fashioned, hand-written letter to at least 5 of these MPs about the unanimous passing of Bill C-4. What do I write? Here are some thoughts: – In June you voted against this. – You faithfully expressed your concern about what was wrong with this bill. – Yesterday you did nothing to prevent it sailing through the Commons without debate. – There is now no opportunity to amend this bill in the House so that conversion therapy is properly defined. |
| Current MPs that voted against C-6 If your MP is not one of the ones listed and you want to include them in your communication as well, click here. |
Dean Allison – Niagara West
John Barlow – Foothills
Michael Barrett – Leeds – Grenville – Thousand Islands and Rideau Lakes
Bob Benzen – Calgary Heritage
Candice Bergen – Portage – Lisgar
James Bezan – Selkirk – Interlake – Eastman
Kelly Block – Carlton Trail – Eagle Creek
Richard Bragdon – Tobique – Mactaquac
Blaine Calkins – Red Deer – Lacombe
Michael Cooper – St. Albert – Edmonton
Marc Dalton – Pitt Meadows – Maple Ridge
Earl Dreeshen – Red Deer – Mountain View
Dave Epp – Chatham-Kent – Leamington
Ted Falk – Provencher
Rosemarie Falk – Battlefords – Lloydminster
Ed Fast – Abbotsford
Cheryl Gallant – Renfrew – Nipissing – Pembroke
Garnet Genuis – Sherwood Park – Fort Saskatchewan
Marilyn Gladu – Sarnia – Lambton
Tracy Gray – Kelowna – Lake Country
Rachael Thomas (Harder) – Lethbridge
Randy Hoback – Prince Albert
Robert Kitchen – Souris – Moose Mountain
Tom Kmiec – Calgary Shepard
Damien C, Kurek – Battle River – Crowfoot
Stephanie Kusie – Calgary Midnapore
Chris Lewis – Essex
Dane Lloyd – Sturgeon River – Parkland
Ben Lobb – Huron – Bruce
Dave MacKenzie – Oxford
Dan Mazier – Dauphin – Swan River – Neepawa
Rob Morrison – Kootenay – Columbia
Glen Motz – Medicine Hat – Cardston – Warner
Jeremy Patzer – Cypress Hills – Grasslands
Brad Redekopp – Saskatoon West
Lianne Rood – Lambton – Kent – Middlesex
Andrew Scheer – Regina – Qu’Appelle
Martin Shields – Bow River
Gerald Soroka – Yellowhead
Warren Steinley – Regina – Lewvan
Mark Strahl – Chilliwack – Hope
Shannon Stubbs – Lakeland
Corey Tochor – Saskatoon – University
Tako Van Popta – Langley – Aldergrove
Gary Vidal – Desnethé – Missinippi – Churchill River
Arnold Viersen – Peace River – Westlock
Brad Vis – Mission – Matsqui – Fraser Canyon
Cathay Wagantall – Yorkton – Melville
Chris Warkentin – Grande Prairie – Mackenzie
Kevin Waugh – Saskatoon – Grasswood
John Williamson – New Brunswick Southwest
Bob Zimmer – Prince George – Peace River – Northern Rockies
One-Pager – Conversion Therapy Bans
Conversion therapy bans can be supported if they are well-defined and capture only coercive or dangerous therapeutic practices such as shock therapy. The problem is that the conversion therapy bans being passed in Canada capture the good with the bad by using an overly broad definition.
