Advertisement

News

Patrick Brown’s sex-ed gamble may just work


Whether by design or accident, luck or logic, Ontario PC leader Patrick Brown has emerged not in trouble but largely triumphant from the sex-education curriculum controversy of recent weeks. 

The conventional wisdom is that Brown’s flip-flopping on the issue – he now says he supports the curriculum – has alienated social conservatives in the party and divided his base. But rumours of the PC leader’s political demise have been greatly exaggerated. The reality is that white, Christian, social conservatives don’t matter anymore in the PC party. 

There has been a barrage of speculation as to what Brown knew and when he knew it about a letter sent to Scarborough-Rouge River constituents on the eve of a vital by-election September 1 declaring the PC leader would “scrap” the new Ontario sex education curriculum if elected Premier. The area has large Chinese Christian and Muslim communities, both suspicious, if unclear, about what the curriculum teaches. Brown had already flip-flopped on the issue and now appeared to be doing so again.

New details to emerge since the election suggest Brown has a touch of Machiavellian about him – or he’s one of the luckiest politicians around. 

According to a version of events posted by Parents As First Educators (PAFE) president Tanya Granic Allen on the group’s website September 20 (and since apparently taken down), PAFE was involved with Brown’s office in the drafting of the now infamous letter promising to scrap the sex-ed curriculum. 

Allen says Brown signed off on the letter personally. In fact, “It was Patrick Brown’s personal preference that the word “scrap” be used in the letter instead of my suggested word “repeal.”” 

At the time, Allen says PAFE was in talks with Brown’s office about the group’s support of the candidacy of pro-life independent Queenie Yu in Scarborough-Rouge River. Yu ended up finishing a distant fourth in the by-election attracting less than 600 votes. PAFE claims the support of some 75,000 members province-wide.

The reality is social conservatives roar and threaten but they have risible support among the PC rank and file. 

Take the anti-sex-ed demonstration at Queen’s Park September 21 ostensibly called to direct anger at Brown over his sex-ed flip-flop. A mere 200 people turned up. The usual faces were there – right-wing Catholics from Campaign Life, Charles McVety, some evangelical zealots, and a few assorted fundamentalists. 

But there were very few members of minority communities who gave earlier demonstrations the noise and numbers. And no PC MPPs.

The most noticeably absent being Monte McNaughton, the Lambton-Kent-Middlesex PC MPP who took up the cause against the sex-ed curriculum during his failed bid for the PC leadership before dropping out of that race to throw his support behind Brown. McNaughton reportedly showed up briefly before the protest to greet some participants before heading back to his Queen’s Park office. 

It was McNaughton who, it was revealed last week, sent a fundraising e-mail to supporters in the heat of the Scarborough-Rouge River byelection about Brown’s letter and asking for a donation for Scarborough-Rouge River PC candidate Raymond Cho. 

According to PAFE, McNaughton and other PC MPPs were instructed by Brown “to avoid the rally and not to speak.” That no social conservatives among the Tory caucus showed up suggests they’ve been sufficiently marginalized by Brown, who has been riding high in public opinion polls. 

Among right-wing Tories outside of Toronto sex-ed is an important issue, but Brown will not lose any of his traditional seats over his flip-flops about what kids are learning about birds, bees or anything else for that matter. They would never vote Liberal anyway, and are far more concerned with property rights, gun laws, their hydro bills and agricultural policy than sex education. 

They may shake their heads and condemn the “Toronto elites” but that’s about it. 

Where the sex-ed controversy may hurt Brown is among immigrants in the 905. Many Muslims do indeed have profound concerns about the curriculum. But Brown has formed close and genuine relationships with immigrant communities, including Indian Hindu leaders and is  spending a lot of time extending those ties into the Pakistani and Indian Muslim neighbourhoods. 

Whether more 416 ridings are now in play that Brown has said that his party is “socially liberal and economically conservative,” remains to be seen. Clearly, Brown’s strategy is to make a play for Wynne’s LGBTQ base by endorsing the sex-ed curriculum and, earlier this year, marching in the Pride parade. Brown has also expressed his support for recognition of same-sex marriage, another position he opposed while sitting as federal MP in Stephen Harper’s caucus in Ottawa.

Will Brown’s gambit work? 

One highly-placed Tory strategist described the approach on sex-ed with minority communities this way: “The Liberals introduced it and will make sure it’s implemented. We won’t scrap it but we will monitor it.” Wink, wink. 

news@nowtoronto.com | @nowtoronto

Advertisement

Exclusive content and events straight to your inbox

Subscribe to our Newsletter

This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

By signing up, I agree to receive emails from Now Toronto and to the Privacy Policy and Terms & Conditions.