On November 29, 2021, Bill C-4, a bill to amend the criminal code making it illegal to practice conversion therapy in Canada, was tabled. 

NL’s own Gemma Hickey was invited to Ottawa by the Minister of Justice to witness this pivotal moment in the House of Commons.  

We sit down with Hickey to talk Pride and the advances made towards ending prejudice for those in the LGBTQQIP2SAA community.

 How did it make you feel when you realized real change would be forthcoming?

I never thought I’d live to see this day. My life could’ve ended as a statistic. I attempted suicide as a teenager because I saw a conversion therapist and spent the start of my senior year of high school in hospital recovering. I spoke at the press conference following the tabling of the bill alongside Ministers David Lametti, Marci Ien, Randy Boissonnault, Pascale St-Onge, and Rob Oliphant MP and dedicated my speech to all the members of my community whose lives ended tragically by suicide. 

Following the presser, I met with fellow Newfoundlander and Labradorian Minister Seamus O’Regan to celebrate. 

What exactly is conversion therapy? Can you explain to those who don’t know? 

It’s a pseudo-medical practice of attempting to change a person’s sexual orientation and gender identity to heterosexual or cisgender. Misleading marketing campaigns have promoted this view for years enabling countless vulnerable youth to be placed in harm’s way. 

Efforts to restrict and ban the practice have recently gained momentum due to the hard work of survivors like myself, who have shared our stories in the hopes that others will be spared. Together we formed a network and created the political will that converted a country. On December 2, 2021, through a rare occurrence of bi-partisan cooperation, conversion therapy became illegal in Canada. A bittersweet victory because of all the causalities my community endured.

It’s Pride season across the country. How far have we come? Are we getting to where we need to be? 

The activist in me was born the day I left that hospital. No one believed me that conversion therapy existed back then. I devoted the next three decades of my life to advocacy co-leading movements that fostered societal recognition, such as same-sex marriage, gender neutral identification, the removal of the gay blood ban, and so on. 

Locally, I became General Director of LBGT-MUN, co-chair of NGALE and chair of Pride until becoming more involved on the national scene as the Presidents of Egale Canada, PFLAG Canada and a founding member of Canadians for Equal Marriage. I’ve witnessed, and been a part of massive societal change, and although we’ve made great strides, we’re not there yet. 

We need accessible healthcare for transgender individuals, improved mental health supports for the LGBTQQIP2SAA community and representation within our education system. Also, if businesses and organizations are celebrating Pride and not updating their forms or computer systems to include gender-neutral options and the honorific Mx., they’re not practicing inclusivity. After I won my fight for gender-neutral identification I wrote airplanes, universities, insurance companies, etc. That fight continues to this day.

In July of 2015 you walked almost 1,000 kilometers across Newfoundland to raise funds and awareness for survivors of religious institutional abuse. The anniversary of your Hope Walk is coming up. Does the journey continue?

The journey never ends. I knew in 2013 when I founded the Pathways Foundation that we had only scratched the surface when it came to this issue. It’s been almost seven years since I ended my walk at the Mount Cashel Memorial in St. John’s. Since that time countless bodies of children have been discovered across the country at the former sites of residential schools and more allegations have surfaced against clergy all over the world. I formed a network with other Canadian survivors called ACTS Canada (Advocates for Clergy Trauma Survivors). 

We’ve been to Rome twice to lobby church officials to release church records, to the United Nations in Geneva to lobby against child torture and launched a national campaign to lobby the church to release the names of the credibly accused. Except for the UN, all other attempts remain futile, forcing survivors to litigate or remain in the shadows.

What is ‘On The Fringe’? can you expand this to fit two lines?

In my day job as Executive Director of Artforce (formerly For The Love Of Learning) I offer support to youth, many of whom are marginalized within society. They struggle with homelessness, addiction, mental health, etc. As an arts-based charity we offer creative projects in film, writing, photography, music, theatre, art, etc. We pair young people up with well-known artists from the community through workshops and mentorship programs and promote their work at festivals, exhibits, on stage or in a publication. On The Fringe is our latest production in partnership with Walsh Productions. It debuted on CBC Here & Now recently and highlights the challenges that sex workers faced during the pandemic. Some of our clients are sex workers and as a result couldn’t apply for government support during Covid-19. 

Do you have any bucket list items left to conquer? 

Always. I’ve got several projects ongoing now. I’m working on my second book and my first feature length documentary film. But I wouldn’t rule out politics or another long walk in my future. 

Every situation, good or bad, is an opportunity. My losses in life have turned me into a winner. 

While many see you as a leader and an advocate for all, do you see yourself as inspirational? 

I don’t really think about how others see me. I only think about how I see myself. When I look in the mirror now, I’m finally happy with the image staring back. I learned how to become the hero of my own story. I may not have faith in the institution of the church anymore, but I have faith in the people around me who inspire me every day. 

A graduate of Memorial University in Biology and Geography, Snow spent over 35 years in the fisheries sector with the Canadian government and private industry in resource management and harvesting through the market, consulting those in government and industry and travelling to international markets over the course of three decades.

Snow did his research, and kept notes, and as such had more than a few stories to share.

“All of my fishing career, I had gathered a lot of documentation and oh jeez, I don’t know how many years it took before I got around to writing the book called From Fishing Boat To Ottawa,” shared Snow, a proud Newfoundlander who now calls Ottawa home. “I pretty well told the whole story of the fishery off Newfoundland as it pertained to Canadian fisheries and also foreign fishing as well.”

Trio of tales

Snow’s From Fishing Boat To Ottawa applied his vast experience in government and industry as a manager and consultant to reveal hidden features of Eastern Canada’s fishing industry. It would follow An Atlantic Trilogy, a trio of tales of survival and tragedy centered on a fishing family, pilot whale disaster and a unique take on an Atlantic salmon’s life story.

Most recently, Snow made his debut foray into fiction with Foreign Danger, a novel of drama, suspense and intrigue that applied Snow’s own real world fisheries expertise and examines fisheries surveillance on Canada’s East Coast.

“I used to have a chance to explain to a lot of people here in Ontario about what happens offshore in Newfoundland with foreign fishing. They only know what they see sometimes in the news. So a friend of mine said ‘you should write a novel about that,’” Snow recalled. “I thought about it for a couple of years before I got around to it. And then in 2021 I managed to put it all together and got a publisher over in the U.K. and that came out. And of course, it’s called Foreign Danger.

“When I was in Newfoundland I was director of resource management there. I was involved in all the offshore activities related to foreign countries and whatever. So based on that, I wrote a novel. Now, a lot of it of course is true. It’s very realistic, there’s no doubt about that. But there’s a lot of parts of course that are not. I used my imagination on a lot of it as well.”

‘It was catastrophic’

Reflecting on three decades since the cod moratorium rocked the foundations of the province and Snow, who was in a real world position to see the ins and outs of the devastating deal, pauses.

“It was catastrophic, and it should never have happened,” he admits, explaining that warning signs were there long before ‘92.

“Back in the ‘84 and the Kirby report came out saying that we were going to have 465,000 tons of cod available and all this kind of thing, my information didn’t agree with that. And I sat down with some people and sort of explained to them and the final answer they used to give me was ‘well, this is what the scientists say.’ But you see, there were other things happening as well. I was talking with fishing vessel captains from all across the south coast who were out on the Grand Banks fishing for years. I talked with many fishermen, and the information they were giving me certainly didn’t justify that there was going to be this big influx of cod, for instance, and other ground-fish as well.

“Of course that could never last,” he adds somberly. “When I got out of university in 1970, I knew one thing for sure: unless we change management in fisheries, it couldn’t last. It just could not last. And of course, it took till ‘92 before it was completely fished out. It’s a sad story. Of course, what kills me is I was part of it. It was a sad, sad state. I mean, a lot of fishermen and a lot of people were out of work. Thousands, 30-40,000. So that’s catastrophic. It was a sad day, there’s no doubt about that, when John Crosbie had to announce that.”

For more on the written works of Gordon Snow and much more visit gordonsnow.com

Jean Charest is no stranger to politics and he’s no stranger to Newfoundland and Labrador. In fact, Charest was one of the influential politicians who made the trip to attend former colleague John Crosbie’s funeral in Jan. 2020.                                       

 Charest begins our chat sharing how simply being in this province brings him joy. When asked how he is on this April day he responds cheerily with, “I’m very well, thank you. How could I not be? I’m in St. John’s.”

 Charest has quite the political resume. First elected to the House of Commons in 1984 under former prime minister Brian Mulroney’s Progressive Conservative (PC) government, he would serve in several federal cabinet positions between 1986 and 1993. Charest became the leader of the PC Party in 1993, a role he remained in until entering provincial politics in Quebec in 1998 and was premier of that province for three consecutive terms, from 2003 to 2012. The 63-year-old, who is re-entering federal politics after a 30 year absence, officially confirmed his candidacy for leadership of the Conservative Party of Canada in Calgary, telling those in attendance he was confident in his ability to win the next federal election. Charest, campaigning under the slogan “built to win,” describes himself (via his campaign website) as a “conservative voice that can bring our movement together around common cause issues that champion our values.”

Others vying to lead the party include current party favourite Pierre Poilievre and social conservative Leslyn Lewis.

While voters throughout NL have not been welcoming to the Conservative party through the last three federal elections, Charest admitted that while he knows he has work to do, he’s also determined.  “I intend to be a prime minister for Newfoundland Labrador. And as someone who knows the issues well, I’m very enthusiastic about getting support here and representing the province and working with people here in the province,” he said.

Charest says that part of the reason he has such an affiliation for this place is because of the late John Crosbie, who was both a colleague and a friend.

“I had a great admiration for that man. I worked with John Crosbie in cabinet. I supported a lot of what he put forward for Newfoundland and Labrador and we became friends,” he said.

Crosbie’s impact

In fact, Charest added, he thought highly of him personally, as well. “I just admired the way he led his life. He was a free thinker – an original. He was a staunch defender of Newfoundland  and Labrador. He breathed it. He ate it. It was his life. And I thought that was an example of what all of us should do for the people that we represent.”

But Crosbie’s impact was felt far beyond this province, he continued. “He left a mark on the country. He made an impact.” Charest has many “Crosbie” stories and many examples of the influence the man had. “If you were a member of parliament or a minister and you wanted to do an event in your riding, in Saskatchewan or anywhere, you invited John Crosbie and the room would be packed. No matter where he went, people were fascinated with him and thought he was one of a kind. I thought the world of him, and that’s why I wanted to attend his funeral, to show my respect and to help celebrate an extraordinary life.” 

Crosbie supported his leadership bid in ‘93, something that was “an honour,” Charest added, but most treasured memories revolve around the friendship.

There were fishing trips with Crosbie and the late George H.W. Bush, former president of the United States, as well as the late Craig Dobbin of Universal Helicopters.  The men visited Labrador, fishing at Adlatok River throughout the 1990s. Charest has so many personal tales of times spent with Crosbie. 

“I remember when I was in opposition … he and Jane (Crosbie’s wife) came over for dinner at the house and with our children, and we just had such a great time, but I remember John would say all sorts of provocative things. One time my young daughter got in an argument with him and Jane had to intervene, saying, ‘John! Stop it!’ And then Jane saying to my daughter, ‘don’t listen to him!’ There’ll never be another John Crosbie. He was such an original. I was fortunate to have his support of me in the leadership race and to have him as a friend.”

 Does Charest think NL is ready to welcome the Conservative party back? The ABC campaign (Anything But Conservative) launched by then NL premier Danny Williams against Stephen Harper in the 2008 Canadian federal election, encouraged voters in the province to support any party but the federal Conservatives. However, Charest says with renewed passion, “now’s the time to transition to a new era.”

It’s something Newfoundlanders and Labradorians experienced before, he added, back when John Crosbie was in office. “I was part of that. Big things got done, that’s when the Atlantic Accord was done. That’s when we set the framework that launched this economy. Hibernia came after that. That was a golden period of extraordinary cooperation between the federal government and Newfoundland and Labrador and that’s what we need now, what we’re looking to have in the future.”

He has big plans for the country, and  he feels NL will play a large role in that. 

“Newfoundland and Labrador needs an ally in Ottawa to be able to expand its energy projects and bring them to North America. And I want to do that, I want to be that Prime Minister. I want to write that chapter for Newfoundland and Labrador.”

‘You need a CT scan’

It has to be asked: with such a break from politics, why step back in now? Charest laughed, and in John Crosbie style answered first with: “Well, my wife Michèle told me, ‘I think you need a CT scan.’” 

However, the leadership hopeful insists he loves this country and he cares what happens. 

“It is about the country. I care very deeply about this country, my whole life. That’s why I went to Quebec to push back on the separatists wanting to hold a referendum and then turning that around. But I look at the country now and it’s deeply divided,” he said.

It’s these uncertain times when the country turns to the Conservatives, he added. “We should be the alternative to this [Liberal] government. People say, ‘get your act together and get yourself organized.’ That’s what’s got me in this race. The alternatives are not attractive.

“Either we go down the route of American-style politics or we are going to remain Canadian … I’m running for that reason: to unite the party and deliver a national government to the country and move us out of the divisions.  As someone who’s been a premier and understands how this federal system works inside and out, I want to make the system work to get things done.” 

How has his NL visit gone, we ask. It’s been positive, he said. In fact, he calls his reception “heart warming.”

Leo Power, Eugene Manning and Carol Anstey have been helping his campaign here in this province, he shared. “It’s been fantastic. The people have been great.  It’s a unique part of the world and being here is fantastic before I have to go to Ottawa and react to the budget.”   

For more visit: www.jeancharest.ca

What is my question to the members of the so-called “Freedom Convoy” that held Ottawa and some other places hostage recently. 

You said you were a trucker convoy, but you became something else and that was a very dark entity. It started honestly enough when a group wanted government to end restrictions imposed in the middle of the COVID epidemic. That is fair.

The right of people to petition government on various matters is CENTRAL to our democracy. It started out as a group representing truckers, but most major trucking organizations were not part of it. As so often happens in protests the idea morphed into something else. That happens a lot.

A ticket to govern?

In the end the group was overtaken by a radical fringe. One faction wanted the government to resign and have the group from the convoy run the country. Like that was going to happen. The expertise the group had was blowing horns and blocking streets. That isn’t much of a calling card or a ticket to govern.

What the group did ultimately was to alienate people. The uprising lost support almost from day one. Nobody ever won over a population to a way of thinking by blowing horns and keeping people up all night or by blocking streets and disrupting the way of life of those people. That’s not how successful revolutions work. 

The Ottawa protest in particular had no “command and control” and that “command and control” is a virtue in any uprising, getting people on the same page. Instead, some people were out of control as in elements that went urinating on the grave of Canada’s Unknown Soldier; someone else flew a Nazi flag; and another group wanted free food from one of Ottawa’s homeless shelters.

The Smell of Trump

Now to me one of the most disturbing images was that of a Donald Trump supporter on horseback waving a flag. That was disturbing because in the end this wasn’t a protest of truckers. It was a group of people that believed government to be the root of all their troubles.  It was a group that included right-wing extremists and in the air was the unmistakable smell of Donald Trump and that which he stands for.

I think the protesters by and large were manipulated. They were a destabilizing force funded in part at least from afar. 

The good news is that Canada is a great nation. It was discovered early on that this wasn’t a trucker’s protest, it was something else. Their high-water mark was getting coffee and sandwiches for their group. They will go home now and will not have learned anything. Meanwhile we ordinary law-abiding citizens did. We who know that there’s more to defeating a pandemic that blowing your horn all night will carry on.