In Ontario, while kids’ math and reading scores are falling behind, Premier Doug Ford is prioritizing diversity, equity, and inclusion for Ontario children.
Since Doug Ford took power 6 years ago, Ontario’s children have been indoctrinated with the most radical sex-ed/gender theory; with the marxist critical race theory; and with whatever woke theory is trending. There is no real opt-out. Kids are getting hit with this radical agenda at any time in the classroom.
And now it seems Doug Ford feels the need to have more Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) in his Ministry of Education.
On July 29, it was announced that Giselle (Gigi) Basanta will be joining the Ministry of Education as Chief Equity Officer and Assistant Deputy Minister, Education Equity and Governance Secretariat.
According to the job posting with the firm which helped recruit for this position, Chief Equity Officer will, among other things, “provide advice to the Minister [of Education]”. Why is our Minister of Education seeking advice from an Equity Officer? And what kind of advice do you think an Equity Officer will provide?
Some other responsibilities of Ford’s new Education Equity Officer include:
data collection for students and staff
diversity in hiring and teacher training
leadership and governance
curriculum
student achievement
And who exactly is Giselle Basanta? For starters, she has extensive experience in advising in education and governance matters. In fact, in 2021 she is listed as being on the “Sunshine List” for earning over $193,000 for providing Legal Services and Counsel to the Peel District School Board. Prior to that, she also worked as counsel to the Toronto District School Board.
The Magazine Canadian Lawyer interviewed Basanta and shared her stressful experience working at the Peel District School Board:
“I had joined the Peel District School Board in December 2020 and was feeling the stress of the commute from Etobicoke; my boss, who had recruited me, left, adding to the stress. I also divorced and was co-parenting my eight-year-old son with my ex-wife and two dads.”
(Photo source: Giselle Basanta's LinkedIn page)
Why is Doug Ford’s government hiring equity officers?
Why is the Minister of Education seeking advice from a Chief Equity Officer?
Why is our government turning our schools into woke indoctrination camps?
Tell Premier Doug Ford and Minister of Education Todd Smith to stop hiring Equity Officers, and to stop indoctrinating Ontario’s children!
Call their offices:
Doug Ford - 416-325-3777
Todd Smith - 416-325-2600
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If you call the Premier, here is an example of how a phone conversation may go:
This conversation led to more questions. Basanta’s position was advertised earlier this year as “Chief Equity Officer and Assistant Deputy Minister, Education Equity and Governance Secretariat.” The position does not seem to require any formal qualifications or experience but the ideal candidates should have “a profound grasp of human rights principles, specifically concentrating on identifying and addressing systemically based barriers to equitable student achievement.” In other words, the position should be filled by someone who subscribes to the propagated theory that invisible forces selectively oppress people based on ethnicity (or sexuality, gender identity, etc.)
And to confirm, this seems to be a new position at the Ministry of Education, as there is no record of a “Chief Equity Officer” when searching the 2023 Public Sector Salary Disclosure. In any case, it’s important to ask questions. We need to start getting familiar with how this system works (or doesn’t work). NOTE: You may find that an answer you receive from one representative may vary or even contradict that from another representative. This is itself a problem as it demonstrates how little our government employees themselves know about how our system should work.
Ford continues to disappoint.