O'Toole maintains Bill 21 a 'question for Quebec' after teacher removed for wearing hijab

Conservative Leader Erin O’Toole maintains that Quebec’s controversial secularism law is a provincial debate, after a Quebec elementary school teacher was recently removed from the classroom for wearing a hijab.

O’Toole said while he’s personally against Bill 21, which prohibits certain government employees from donning religious symbols at work, he respects provincial autonomy.

The Western Quebec School Board has confirmed that a Grade 3 teacher at Chelsea Elementary School in Chelsea, Que., was removed from the classroom because of the law.

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Parents of Grade 3 students at the school received an email on Friday, Dec. 3 letting them know the teacher would no longer be in the classroom. Some parents later learned the teacher was removed because of Bill 21.

Parents have been placing green ribbons on a fence outside the school in support of the teacher.

The Conservative leader faced a flurry of questions on the matter Thursday morning but doubled down on his position that he most recently shared along the federal election campaign trail.

“I don’t agree with the secular tenets of Bill 21 but it is a question for Quebec to decide and I do think we have to make sure that everyone is respectful and respected in these discussions,” he said.

“What I’ve tried to do is talk to the premier about my personal views and also then try and find areas of common cause where we can work together.”

He added that if elected as prime minister, he would not introduce legislation comparable to Bill 21 at a federal level and that he would be a leader for all Canadians.

“Regardless of what day of the week you may worship or if you don’t have a faith at all, whatever your cultural background, your race, your creed, you’re welcome in our party,” he said.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has stated that he disagrees with the law, which came into effect in June 2019, but hasn’t gone so far as to call it discriminatory. He also indicated that he’s keeping the door open to a court challenge of Bill 21 at a later date.

Heading into question period on Thursday, Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland avoided weighing in on the incident specifically, but said the prime minister has been “very clear” about the party’s stance.

NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh has, on the other hand, dubbed Bill 21 discriminatory but won’t commit to federal intervention if elected prime minister.

Singh on Thursday said the incident at the Chelsea school is “exactly why” he’s opposed to the law.

“There were no concerns about her capacity and ability to teach. No concerns about whether she’s providing good education to kids. Simply because of the way she looked and the way she dressed, she is no longer able to teach those kids,” he said, adding that the incident also hits close to home for him personally.

“I know what that’s like, to feel like you don’t belong because of the way you look, and to not be able to do what you love because of the way you look, that’s what’s happening right now.”

Asked again whether the Trudeau government should elevate the case to federal court, Singh said only that the provincial challenge already underway is “the right thing.”

“It’s important that laws that are unjust in provinces are challenged in those provinces,” he said.

In an interview with CTV News Ottawa, Western Quebec School Board interim chair Wayne Daly said the board removed the teacher from the classroom once the human resources department was made aware of the situation.

All principals at schools within the board received a memo outlining the law and instructing them to "take it into consideration when you're hiring teachers," said Daly.

Daly says the board told the Quebec government that it "categorically stated our opposition to Bill 21 from the basic human rights perspective," adding the law is "unethical."

The Western Quebec School Board says the teacher will remain employed with the school in "another function," but would not release further details.

With files from CTV News Ottawa’s Jeremie Charron and Josh Pringle