HARRIS AND GAYS

Calgary Herald - January 24, 2004
Who's behind Belinda?
Nigel Hannaford

In 1994, the Mike Harris Tories won the Ontario provincial Victoria-Haliburton byelection. One effective radio pitch asked why the NDP was focused on gay rights, when joblessness was Ontario's problem. Ontario gays were irritated and Harris aide Jamie Watt, with Randall Pearce, one-time director of communications for the federal PCs, complained to the premier. Both Watt and Pearce were gay rights activists. Along with one George Marsland, they were among gay conservatives who founded the Canadian Human Rights Campaign to advocate for gay equality legislation.

The Toronto magazine NOW quotes Pearce: "Jamie and I went in and expressed our displeasure and asked that he not campaign on our backs again. And Mr. Harris made a commitment to us that he would not do that." Nor did he. When the Supreme Court of Canada ruled in the 1999 M v. H case that gays and lesbians must be included in family law statutes, Harris shocked supporters with hasty amendments to bring no less than 67 provincial statutes into conformity. Why, when many of his caucus wanted him to use the charter's notwithstanding clause? According to Marsland, who served with future Canadian Alliance leadership candidate Tom Long in Brian Mulroney's prime minister's office, "Jamie did a lot of work behind the scenes to build comfort on those things. Sixty-seven pieces of amending legislation were passed without a whimper. No muss. No fuss. That's an accomplishment." (NOW, June 22, 2000).

Or influence; influence is not always threats, or an envelope of non-sequential 20s. It's also somebody who has earned the right to utter gentle persuasion into a powerful man's ear. Watt had done well for Harris. That made him close to Harris. Closer it seems, than people who had voted for him. The influence of gay conservatives within Ontario Toryism is poorly understood out West. Only political junkies would recall, for instance, that when Long pursued the Alliance leadership, Watt and Marsland were among his key organizers, encouraged his gay-friendly stance, and arranged a gathering to present Long to Toronto area gays and lesbians. (Marsland's employer, Magna International, paid for it.)

So, westerners may be excused their surprise that some of the same people are now promoting Belinda Stronach to lead Canada's Conservatives. Marsland, Magna's director of corporate citizenship, is a trusted colleague. Watt is on her campaign team. Harris is on her board, also Mulroney. Stronach also has red Tory John Laschinger, fresh from a successful campaign for left-leaning Toronto mayor David Miller. Throw in Calgary's Rod Love, and just judging by experience and organizational skill, it's an all-star team. However, what will they tell her? Because, she'll be asking. Her unscripted comments so far suggest she knows little more about policy than I know about making motor cars. (Not much.) Well, what would one expect socially liberal gay activists to tell her, especially those with demonstrated aptitude for turning supposedly conservative politicians? Or from a politician they've influenced? Or red Tories? These are not the people who are going to tell her marriage is for straights, or that unborn babies have a right to life. Yet, for many Canadians, those things are of far more significance than baking bigger pies, no matter who gets to lick the bowl, or Stronach's sartorial style and marital disappointments (which have no policy implications at all. Leave 'em alone.) So, has she been influenced by the team she chose, or did she choose the team she did because that's how she thinks? My spidey sense says nobody pushed her to endorse gay marriage, or pro-choice. They're among the few things she sounds sure about.

Of course, gay conservatives have the same right as other Canadians to join a party and promote their cause. But non-gay conservatives also have the right to say, "no thanks." After all, they're not choosing somebody to carry out party policy. Instead, the choice between Stephen Harper and Stronach will determine policy. If conservatives want another Ontario-dominated, soft-centred party trying to be all things to all men, Stronach has the team to give it them. But if the Reform party meant anything, I don't think they do.

nhannaford@theherald.canwest.com