Sometimes The Law Is An Ass

"Where an employer's dress or grooming standards create a discriminatory impact, it will be incumbent on the employer to establish that the standards are a bona fide occupational requirement, most likely on the basis that they are necessary to protect workplace health and safety."

"Similarly, it is important to recognize the impact that dress code policies can have on members of the transgender community. Most notably, it is important for employers to make allowances to ensure that these employees are able to express themselves in accordance with their lived gender."

"Even if a dress code is implemented for non-discriminatoy reasons and in good faith, it would likely be found to be discriminatory."

Halton District School Board Report

Oakville Trafalgar High School transgender shop teacher Kayla Lemieux is seen here at a theatre in Halton Region. Photo by Supplied

 

Photos and videos of an industrial arts teacher at Oakville Trafalgar High School west of Toronto elicited gasps of disbelief from parents when they showed the teacher wearing giant prosthetic breasts with prominent nipples. Published on social media by students, the illustrations led to headlines in a number of other countries, appearing in multiple languages. There was outrage expressed, disbelief that such an absurdity could occur and a concern that students exposed to this kind of outrageous showmanship would be led to take the education system less seriously than might be warranted.

 

The Ontario Minister of Education was not amused. He urged the Ontario College of Teachers to consider producing a review for the purpose of emphasizing the importance of professional conduct provisions. The college agreed to the request but has not yet produced its review. "The College has been reviewing its professional standards in response to Minister Lecce's request. We will provide our response to the Minister when it is ready.".

For its part the Halton District School Board initiated its own report into a teacher dress code, releasing the results at a school board meeting. Sari Taha, superintendent of human resources with the school board informed trustees of two considerations with respect to dress codes; the first whether a dress code would be permitted under labour and employment law. Secondly, whether it would be consistent with Ontario's Human Rights Code.

There is a theory from insider sources that the teacher had an earlier disagreement with school officials. Where he was criticized for lack of seriousness toward diversity initiatives. The theory holds that he decided to confront the school with an exaggerated outcome of their policies, a type of 'performance art' in appearing in a vastly exaggerated costume meant to draw notice and it certainly did do that. 

What it also demonstrates is how bound up institutions have become in heeding human rights codes lest they be charged with human rights abuses, in particular against members of the LGBTQ-2 community in solidarity with transgender rights. Nothing diminishes the shock value and outrageous behaviour of an individual to whom student education is entrusted, making a mockery of social conduct.

School administrations, school boards and teachers' unions are all held hostage to the woke-liberal values of 'human rights' laws and human rights bodies which mandate conformation to their socially liberated acceptance of bizarre behaviour in the interests of furthering human rights for everyone, equally. A sense of responsibility to the student body is completely absent. The issue is not merely whether transgender people have a right to be accepted in society, it is also their responsibility to be part of society.

 

The issue should revolve around the responsibility of authorizing authorities to the students whose interest they purportedly represent. The transgender teacher who chose to flaunt huge prosthetic breasts may have been delivering a message, but it is the students who found the display at odds with their view of social interaction with equal respect for everyone involved, somehow missing respect for then sensibilities of the students themselves.

An image from a video taken at Ontario’s Oakville Trafalgar High School showing a shop teacher wearing enormous silicone breasts with visible nipples while teaching class. Photo by Twitter

"This is simply ridiculous [that the teacher has been informed she may continue dressing in this manner],"

"No one should accept any other form of sexual perversity, no matter how it’s dressed up, being paraded in front of minors at school."

"[The CLC has delivered a petition with 5,000 signatures to the board demanding Kerry “Kayla” Lemieux’s removal from the class because] we saw this teacher’s fetish for wearing large fake breasts with extruding nipples as pornographic and a threat to children."

"Parents should rise up, pull their children out of the school, and make it clear that their children will not return until the board starts putting children, instead of employees, first."

"Parents, unfortunately, won’t be getting any help from Prime Minster (Justin) Trudeau who’s about to make an appearance in Canada’s Drag Race.”

"Trudeau has proven to be an enemy of Canadian families by promoting the delusional lifestyles that lead to this kind of shameful situation."

Pete Baklinski, director of communications, Campaign Life Coalition (CLC)