Some flags are more equal than others

As I mentioned here, for a brief period during the Ottawa March for Life, the March for Life flag fluttered valiantly atop the City Hall – until someone complained, prompting an embarrassed mayor to reassert his pro-abortion credentials and have it removed.

There is a good article defending flying the flag in the National Post.

Here is another article by Rev. Robert Lyon on selective flag flying.

Received via email:

Last Wednesday’s edition of The Record announced that all Waterloo Region public schools will fly the “pride” flag throughout June to mark “Pride Month”.  The Record quotes Board rep Nick Manning as saying that the Board wants to ensure that “public schools remain a welcoming place for everyone.”

“Welcoming” – and also “safe” – are indeed what schools should be.  Every person in a civil society, including those we disagree with, should be able to conduct his or her life without giving or receiving unkindness or abuse.  But Waterloo Region DSB’s “Pride Month” decision is hypocritical. Which makes it also unkind and abusive.

This is the same school board that decided the Gideons could no longer distribute New Testaments in the schools.  The “Pride Month” flag proclaims a particular value system to all and sundry, including those who find it offensive.  The Gideons, on the other hand, who also have a lawful value system to proclaim, sought to avoid giving offense by distributing their Testaments only to students who, with parental permission, would have requested them.  But for the Waterloo Board, even that wasn’t good enough.

The Board’s unequal treatment of these two special interest groups is flagrant.  The Region’s public schools are not “a welcoming place for everyone” – not, at least, for Christians, unless they keep their mouths shut.

“…it’s small acts like this,” Mr Manning said, “that will transform our community.”  They certainly will.  But it’s clear that the Board does not want truly authentic inclusivity.

Let’s suppose, for example, that Christians in Waterloo Region were to declare a “Jesus Month” to promote virtuous and pious living.  Would the Board fly our flag?  Orwell was right: “All animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others.”

So what’s to be done about it?  In his letter to the Christians in Philippi, Paul sends greetings from the brethren in Rome, significantly including “especially those of Caesar’s household.” Even on the staff of the imperial palace there were some who had become obedient to the Faith.  When Tertullian wrote to the Roman Senate a century and a half later, he noted that Christians had infiltrated every aspect of the life of the Empire: the towns, the country, the marketplace, the army, the courts – “and we have left to you only the temples of your gods.”  Where today are the bold, vocal Christians on our city councils and our school boards?

Pastors:  It’s time to encourage informed and capable Christians to run for public office, and for your congregations to support their candidacies.

Anti-capitalist Feminists Oppose Reactionary Misogynists

At least, that’s what the headline says. The opposition was directed against the March for Life in Ottawa and was organised by the Proletarian Feminist Front.

Here is their version of what happened:

Anti-capitalist Feminists Oppose Reactionary Misogynists
(May 14, 2015) Today, between 100-150 protesters took the streets of Ottawa to protest the National March for Life, a march of thousands of people led by reactionary misogynists calling for the criminalization of abortion. Initiated by the Proletarian Feminist Front, organizations of anti-capitalist feminists from Ottawa, Hull, and Montreal rallied to put an end to this patriarchal parade. The counter protest was led by women and gender-oppressed people; despite some men activists attempting to take control over chants or the route, they were quickly shut down.

Before the march even began, Ottawa Police were videotaping protester’s faces, prompting many people to cover up. After the second time the Ottawa Police blocked us with metal barricades, we decided to push through instead of marching to another intersection. So, we smashed through their barricade and past the police!

Once we reached the March for Life, the pigs had formed a line with bicycles in front of another metal barrier. As we charged the barrier to smash through, police began pepper spraying protesters, injuring and temporarily blinding dozens of people. Although we hadn’t expected such an escalation in police brutality in Ottawa, there fortunately were medics prepared to help the injured. The morale of the march was high enough that they were ready to push through another intersection, but another wall of metal and pigs stopped us. From there, we denounced the pigs as obvious defenders of the patriarchal ruling class interests, and continued marching through the city in celebration and in defiance of the Ottawa Police.

Today, we can happily shout that thanks to our collective strength, we forced those patriarchal misogynists off their planned route multiple times before crawling back up to Parliament Hill!

I was one of the patriarchal misogynists who found himself “crawling back up to Parliament Hill”.

But before that, I happened to be at the corner where the altercation between the police and pack of screeching harridans took place. Considering they were being physically assaulted by the protesters, I thought the police exercised remarkable restraint; I didn’t see any pepper spray, police brutality or medics. I took this sequence of photos from the start of the spat until the restoration of order.

The signs wielded by the ladies of the Proletarian Feminist Front are an apt reminder of the coherence of their thought: for example, “Life begins when you are ready to face it”; you can read the less savoury ones for yourself.

March for Life, Ottawa 2015

More photos here.

The opposition:

A colourful member of the opposition:

Not all attendees were Christians:

Some allies were unexpected:

The Anglican signs had the advantage of being tasteful:

 

Abortion is green, it seems. Another reason, in addition to Elizabeth May, for not being green:

More opposition:

The violent opposition:

March for Life Ottawa, 2014

Ecumenical worship before the march:

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERABishop Don Harvey:

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERABishop Charlie and Rev. Dorothy arrive:

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERASome of our lot:

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OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERAOLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERAOLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERAOLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERAPlenty of cameras:

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OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERABishop Charlie Masters opens the march with prayer:

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERAAnd off we go:

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERAOLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERAI know it’s hard to believe, but not everyone agrees with us:

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERAOLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERAMost do:

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERAOLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERAAfter the march:

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERAOLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERAOLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

March for Life: where are the Anglican clergy?

If you care to follow this twitter feed, you will glean some insight into what groups will be represented in today’s March for Life in Ottawa. A quick perusal reveals: CampgnLifeCoalition, MomsAgainstAbortion, Catholic Canada, Women of Grace, Right to Life, Archdiocese of TO, and even Liberal4life, not to mention Pro-Life Humanists.

Notable by its absence is a contingent of clergy from the Anglican Church of Canada; it can’t be an aversion to marches brought on, perhaps, by an outbreak of debilitating corns, since so many ACoC clergy are only too keen to march in the Toronto Pride Parade. The fact is, the Anglican Church of Canada is mysteriously silent on the issue of abortion. The church that tirelessly trumpets its commitment to prophetic social justice making is too fearful to take a stand on the sanctity of an unborn baby’s life; after all, it could be viewed as controversial.

Before you ask, no I’m not there, either; my excuse is I have a lawsuit to pay for.

March for Life Canada Expects Biggest Turnout Ever

From here:

The organizer of Canada’s National March For Life, Campaign Life Coalition, is predicting that, with the help of a massive turnout from Ottawa area Catholic schools, 20,000 people will participate in this year’s annual pro-life march on May 13th, 2010……..

This year’s National March for Life theme is “Abortion – a Crime Against Humanity.” Events will begin on Wednesday, May 12, 2010, with the march beginning with a gathering on Parliament Hill at noon on Thursday, May 13, 2010, followed by the Youth Conference on Friday May 14.

But will the mainstream media notice?