National
Canadian nurse fights to keep license after being accused of ‘transphobia’ for affirming biology
Vancouver-area Nurse Amy Hamm
From LifeSiteNews
‘I strongly believe that in order for women, like I said, to preserve our privacy, our dignity and most importantly our safety, we deserve and are entitled to sex segregated spaces,’ Amy Hamm said.
A British Columbia nurse is testifying to keep her nursing license after she was accused of “transphobia” for defending women’s rights and spaces.
On November 3, after months of hearings, BC nurse Amy Hamm was given a chance to defend herself from accusations by the BC College of Nurses and Midwives (BCCNM) that she is unfit to work as a nurse because she believes that sex is based on biology.
“The issue isn’t about trans people,” Hamm said, according to the Post Millennial. “The issue is about having sex-segregated spaces that don’t have male bodies. Women have reason to fear male violence, and that is the reason that we got sex-segregated spaces in the first place.”
“But I don’t believe that it should be incumbent upon women to accept males into our sex segregated spaces to protect this particular group of biological males from other biological males,” she continued. “I would support third spaces, that sort of thing. But I strongly believe that in order for women, like I said, to preserve our privacy, our dignity and most importantly our safety, we deserve and are entitled to sex segregated spaces.”
Hamm warned that basing gender on anything other than biology puts women in dangerous situations. She recounted several instances in which violent male criminals were sent to female prisons because they claimed to be women.
She further revealed that there is only one rape shelter in Canada that is restricted to actual women. The Vancouver Rape Relief had to fight for its right to deny entry to males in the Supreme Court.
“And since then, there have been constant campaigns to have them shut down,” Hamm added. “Trans activists have, in red paint, you know, written ‘TERF’ and other slurs on their building. They’ve had dead rats nailed to their building, because they don’t admit biological males. And the trans activists in Vancouver ran a campaign to have the city of Vancouver remove their city funding from this rape shelter, which the city of Vancouver actually did.”
During her testimony, which came after she was forced to remain silent for multiple day-long sessions, Hamm revealed that her advocacy for women’s rights has always been separate from her work as a nurse.
“I’ve always kept my private life and my political views and private views very separate from my work life,” she said. “I never talk politics at work.”
Hamm found herself targeted by the BCCNM in 2020 when she co-sponsored a billboard reading, “I [heart] JK Rowling,” referring to the famous British author’s public comments defending women’s washrooms and other private spaces from being used by gender-confused men.
The BCCNM accused Hamm of making “discriminatory and derogatory statements regarding transgender people [sic]” while identifying herself as a nurse or nurse educator.
According to the College, Hamm’s statements were “made across various online platforms, including but not limited to podcasts, videos, published writings, and social media,” between July 2018 and March 2021.
The investigation has been going on for three years, having begun in November 2020. So far, Hamm has appeared before the panel multiple times, including in September 2022 and October 2022, as well as in January and October of this year. The upcoming hearings are scheduled to continue in two blocks of sessions, from October 31 to November 3, and from November 6 to 8.
Now, she underwent her fourth disciplinary hearing in an attempt to keep her license. Many are pointing to Hamm’s trial as an example of Canada’s ever increasing restrictions on free speech, with the National Post calling the investigation a “witch hunt.” However, Hamm said that the grueling experience has only made her stronger.
“And through the onslaught of abuse–both from individuals and the BC College of Nurses–the years of legal troubles, the threat of losing everything, becoming a single mother and coming to terms with that fact–I became stronger than I ever imagined I could be,” she posted on X, formerly known as Twitter, after her last hearing.
National
Canadian military again bans prayers at Remembrance Day ceremonies
From LifeSiteNews
The Canadian Armed Forces member who shared the emails about Remembrance Day with LifeSiteNews stated that ‘this constant desire to erase God from our culture is highly ideological. Canadians don’t support this. Veterans don’t support this.’
The Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) has banned prayer at all Remembrance Day celebrations in the latest attempt to strip Canada of her religious heritage.
This November 11, Remembrance Day celebrations may not include prayers, religious symbols, and readings from the Bible, Torah or Koran, according to a CAF directive shared with LifeSiteNews by a CAF member.
“As a reminder to the team that if military members are mandated or expected to attend an event, we can presume that they represent a diversity of beliefs, including none,” the email sent to the CAF personnel read.
“Chaplains should take the time to reflect on the meaning and purpose of the event and speak words of hope, encouragement, and remembrance to the benefit of all,” it continued.
Last year, the CAF issued a directive placing harsh restrictions on public prayer. However, the orders were rescinded following backlash from Canadians. Now, numerous CAF officials have told chaplains that they plan to enforce the ban this year.
“The document 11 Oct 23 is in effect for this Remembrance Day,” the email stated. “Last year there was flexibility which is not present this year.”
“This update also supersedes any direction that was given following the Spiritual Reflection guidance which allowed some flexibility during the period in late 2023,” it continued.
While the chaplains are required to attend the ceremonies, they are heavily restricted in what they can say or even wear as the chaplain scarves “may cause discomfort or traumatic feelings.”
Under the mandate, no prayer and no religious symbols are permitted at military functions. This includes reading passages from the Bible, Torah or Koran. Instead, words should be chosen to “employ a language mindful of the Gender Based Analysis (GBA+) principles.”
Any “spiritual reflection” offered by military chaplains in a public setting (not including church services or private interactions with members) must be “inclusive in nature, and respectful of the religious and spiritual diversity of Canada,” according to the directive.
According to the email, chaplains can share their opinions on the directive at upcoming meetings, however, there are no meetings scheduled before Remembrance Day.
The CAF member who shared the emails with LifeSiteNews stated that “this constant desire to erase God from our culture is highly ideological. Canadians don’t support this. Veterans don’t support this. And we all saw what happens south of the border when the government is out of touch with the traditions and values of its own people.”
“We’re talking about such core traditional values that have kept our society cohesive and functional and flourishing for like hundreds and thousands of years,” he continued.
The CAF member warned that the mandate is not “banning a religion” but “replacing one religion with another religion, and it’s a secular religion.”
He stressed the importance of religion, especially in the military where soldiers are asked to put their lives on the line in service of their country.
“Think of what soldiers go through, what they face in combat,” he said. “You can’t send people into battle without religion.”
Business
Salary costs in Prime Minister’s Office increase under Trudeau
From the Canadian Taxpayers Federation
By Ryan Thorpe
Like all areas of Ottawa’s ballooning bureaucracy, the cost and size of the Prime Minister’s Office has increased under the Trudeau government.
The inflation-adjusted cost of staffing the PMO has risen by 16 per cent under the watch of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, according to access-to-information records obtained by the Canadian Taxpayers Federation.
Salary costs for the 103 staffers in the PMO came to $10.5 million in 2022-23. That figure does not represent overall compensation for PMO staff (including benefits), but rather base salary, according to the records.
Taxpayers are now on the hook for an additional $3.2 million in annual PMO salary costs over 2014-15, the last full year former prime minister Stephen Harper was in office.
“The cost of running the PMO has increased under Trudeau, but it’s a good bet most Canadians don’t think they’re getting any better performance from the prime minister,” said Franco Terrazzano, CTF Federal Director. “If Trudeau can’t find savings right under his nose, how can taxpayers trust him to cut the fat across government?”
The growth in PMO staff comes at a time when the Trudeau government has been ballooning the federal bureaucracy across the board.
Both the number and cost of the federal bureaucracy has exploded under Trudeau’s watch, according to other government records obtained by the CTF.
The number of federal bureaucrats increased by 42 per cent under Trudeau, with more than 108,000 new bureaucrats added to the government payroll.
Spending on federal bureaucrats hit a record high $67.4 billion in 2022-23, representing a 68 per cent increase since 2016.
The size of the federal c-suite has also expanded, with the number of executives increasing by 42 per cent under Trudeau.
The Trudeau government has handed out more than $1 billion in bonuses since 2015 and more than one million pay raises in the last four years.
Meanwhile, spending on consultants also reached a record high, with planned expenditures for 2023-24 sitting at $21.6 billion.
“Everywhere you look – the PMO, the federal c-suite, the bureaucracy – the cost and size of government is out of control,” Terrazzano said. “Trudeau must take air out of Ottawa’s ballooning bureaucracy and the place to start is his own office.”
PMO staff costs, government records obtained by the CTF
Fiscal year |
Number of PMO staff |
PMO salary costs |
2014-15 |
94 |
$7,258,436 |
2015-16 |
74 |
$6,353,188 |
2016-17 |
84 |
$7,462,686 |
2017-18 |
99 |
$8,155,068 |
2018-19 |
100 |
$8,479,353 |
2019-20 |
90 |
$8,536,672 |
2020-21 |
99 |
$9,840,834 |
2021-22 |
94 |
$9,383,328 |
2022-23 |
103 |
$10,536,649 |
Total |
|
$76,006,214 |
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