A Catholic school board trustee in Red Deer could face dismissal from her role after public backlash from a social media post that likened LGBTQ pride to Nazi Germany.
Monique LaGrange, a trustee of Red Deer Catholic Regional Schools, posted on social media last week a now-deleted post that featured a picture of children waving Nazi flags above a picture of children waving Pride flags.
“Brainwashing is brainwashing,” her post read.
Red Deer Catholic Regional Schools issued a news release on Wednesday confirming it had held a special board meeting on Tuesday regarding LaGrange’s post on Instagram.
The meeting was to discuss “the trustee code of conduct matter, related procedures, and next steps further to trustee Monique LaGrange’s social media post at or around Aug. 30, 2023,” the release said.
“An additional motion was also passed for the board of trustees to write to the minister of education as to the dismissal of trustee LaGrange,” reads the news release from Red Deer Catholic Regional Schools.
Removed from trustees’ association
Harry Salm, president of the Alberta Catholic School Trustees’ Association, said in a statement that the ACSTA board voted Thursday to remove LaGrange from her position as a director of the association.
Salm said the social media post was “unbecoming of an ACSTA director” and “has the potential to undermine the charitable learning environment offered by Alberta’s Catholic school system.”
Removing a trustee from the association’s board “is not a decision we take lightly,” Salm said.
“Our Catholic schools love all students as gifts from God in his image, irrespective of their sexual orientation and gender expression.”
Monique LaGrange’s now-deleted Instagram post featured a picture of children waving Nazi flags above a picture of children waving Pride flags with the caption “Brainwashing is brainwashing.” (@monique_lagrange/Instagram)
Trustee Anne Marie Watson, who had been the board chair going into Tuesday’s special meeting, is no longer in the role, but no reasons were given. Trustees appointed Murray Hollman as the new board chair, with Dorraine Lonsdale as the vice-chair, effective immediately.
CBC contacted LaGrange by phone. She said she was not interested in doing an interview.
Education Minister Demetrios Nicolaides told CBC in a written statement that the board has “full authority and autonomy” to disqualify a sitting trustee.
“The board has indicated that they are seeking advice on the code of conduct and then will proceed accordingly,” Nicolaides said.
“The board has assured me that they will handle this in a quick and effective manner.”
Education Minister Demetrios Nicolaides condemned LaGrange’s comment in a weekend social media post. (Dave Gilson/CBC)
In a weekend post on social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter, Nicolaides “categorically” condemned LaGrange’s comments.
“No one should have to live in fear of violence, discrimination, or exclusion,” he wrote. “All students deserve to feel safe and welcome in schools across the province.”
Post was ‘repugnant’: ATA
In its news release, the school board said the division is built on a foundation of providing “quality inclusive education, diversity, trustworthiness, and a commitment to the well-being of our students.
“Our students and staff, their education, and their safety remain our priority.”
LaGrange has been facing backlash for her post, including from the Alberta Teachers’ Association (ATA), which issued a statement earlier on Wednesday calling for her to resign.
“Not only does it serve to undermine the atrocities of the Nazi regime, but it also acts as a form of oppression to entice further hatred toward members of the 2SLGBTQ+ community,” ATA president Jason Schilling said in a statement.
ATA president Jason Schilling said LaGrange should publicly apologize to those she may have harmed. (David Bajer/CBC)
In an interview on Wednesday, Schilling said the association has long been an advocate and ally for the LGBTQ community. He said teachers and school trustees are responsible for creating a safe space for students.
“So to see this posting by Ms. LaGrange that is repugnant, vile [and] hate-filled really undermines that safe space that we try very hard to create at schools,” Schilling said.
“And if you’re unwilling to do that work to create a safe space for students — for people who work in the building — then you should have no business being a trustee.”
Schilling said LaGrange should acknowledge her comments and publicly apologize to those she may have harmed. Members of the ATA have voiced their concerns, he said, but have not filed any formal complaints.
The association has not spoken with LaGrange, Schilling said.
Lenny Gallant, president of the Central Alberta Pride Society, said his organization is disgusted by LaGrange’s comments.
“This isn’t the first elected official in central Alberta that we’ve had problems with in the past, so it’s disheartening to see that we’re still going down this path,” he said, adding the comments incite hate.
“Whether that’s what she meant by it or not, we take it as hate toward the community.”
Gallant said the society received complaints from community members, including parents. He said members want to see diversity and inclusion training for future Catholic and public school board trustees.
WASHINGTON: China is manipulating global media through censorship, data harvesting and covert purchases of foreign news outlets, the United States said on Thursday (Sep 28), warning the trend could lead to a “sharp contraction” of global freedom of expression.
The US State Department said in a report that Beijing has spent billions of dollars annually on information manipulation efforts, including by acquiring stakes in foreign media through “public and non-public means”, sponsoring online influencers and securing distribution agreements that promote unlabelled Chinese government content.
The Chinese embassy in Washington did not immediately respond to a request for comment. In July, Beijing responded to a NATO communique accusing it of coercive policies and spreading disinformation by saying the statement disregarded basic facts, deliberately discredited China and distorted its policies.
The US report comes amid controversy over China’s efforts in recent years to expand the global footprint of its government-controlled media, especially as geopolitical competition between Beijing and Washington has intensified. Chinese leaders have sought to combat the negative images of China they feel are spread by world media.
Citing public reports and “newly acquired government information”, the State Department’s Global Engagement Center said that Beijing had created its own information ecosystem by co-opting foreign political elites and journalists. It had also invested in satellite networks and digital television services in developing regions that prioritise Chinese state-backed media content.
Chinese data harvesting overseas “has enabled Beijing to fine-tune global censorship by targeting specific individuals and organisations”, it said.
“Unchecked, Beijing’s efforts could result in …. a sharp contraction of global freedom of expression,” the report said.
Despite unprecedented resources devoted to the campaign, Beijing had encountered “major setbacks” when targeting democratic countries due to local media and civil society push back, according to the report, which was produced under a congressional mandate to detail state information manipulation.
China is manipulating global media through censorship, data harvesting and covert purchases of foreign news outlets, according to a new report from the US state department, which warned the trend could lead to a “sharp contraction” of global freedom of expression.
The report released on Thursday found that Beijing had spent billions of dollars annually on information manipulation efforts, including by acquiring stakes in foreign media through “public and non-public means”, sponsoring online influencers and securing distribution agreements that promote unlabelled Chinese government content.
Chinese state media censors itself after highlighting poem about corrupt leaders
Read more
The Chinese embassy in Washington did not immediately respond to a request for comment. In July, Beijing responded to a Nato communique accusing it of coercive policies and spreading disinformation by saying the statement disregarded basic facts, deliberately discredited China and distorted its policies.
The US report comes amid controversy over China’s efforts in recent years to expand the global footprint of its government-controlled media, especially as geopolitical competition between Beijing and Washington has intensified. Chinese leaders have sought to combat the negative images of China they feel are spread by world media.
Citing public reports and “newly acquired government information”, the state department’s global engagement center said that Beijing had created its own information ecosystem by co-opting foreign political elites and journalists. It had also invested in satellite networks and digital television services in developing regions that prioritise Chinese state-backed media content.
Inside China’s audacious global propaganda campaign
Read more
Chinese data harvesting overseas “has enabled Beijing to fine-tune global censorship by targeting specific individuals and organisations”, it said.
“Unchecked, Beijing’s efforts could result in … a sharp contraction of global freedom of expression,” the report said.
Despite unprecedented resources devoted to the campaign, Beijing had encountered “major setbacks” when targeting democratic countries due to local media and civil society pushback, according to the report, which was produced under a congressional mandate to detail state information manipulation.
Outgoing Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Mark Milley has “appropriate measures” to ensure his safety, he said this week in his first public response to shocking comments made by former President Donald Trump suggesting that the Army general is a traitor who deserves execution.
Trump last week accused Milley of going behind his back to communicate with China during the final months of the Trump administration. Milley, who was nominated to be chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff by Trump, is set to leave his military leadership post at the end of the month. The general has stood by his communications with China and said he wishes that Trump hadn’t made his comments on Friday.
“I’ll take appropriate measures to ensure my safety and the safety of my family,” Milley said.
What former President Trump said about Gen. Milley
Trump, in his Friday Truth Social post, also targeted Milley’s role in the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan. The former president indicated that Milley’s decision to leave office was cause for celebration.
“This guy turned out to be a Woke train wreck who, if the Fake News reporting is correct, was actually dealing with China to give them a heads up on the thinking of the President of the United States,” Trump wrote on his social platform Truth Social. “This is an act so egregious that, in times gone by, the punishment would have been DEATH! A war between China and the United States could have been the result of this treasonous act.”
Gen. Milley’s response to former President Trump’s comments
Milley, when asked about the post suggesting he should deserve the death penalty, stressed that he’s a soldier who’s been faithful to the Constitution for more than 44 years. He said he’s willing to die to support and defend the Constitution.
“So I’m not gonna comment directly on those, those things,” he said. “But I can tell you that this military, this soldier, me, will never turn our back on that Constitution.”
Milley also said there was nothing inappropriate or treasonous about his calls to China.
Gen. Milley’s calls to China
The chairman’s spokesperson in 2021 said the general’s calls to China were part of his regular communications with defense chiefs worldwide. The spokesperson described the calls as being crucial to reducing tensions between nations, as well as “avoiding unintended consequences or conflict.”
“His calls with the Chinese and others in October and January were in keeping with these duties and responsibilities conveying reassurance in order to maintain strategic stability,” the spokesperson said in a written statement at the time. “All calls from the chairman to his counterparts, including those reported, are staffed, coordinated and communicated with the Department of Defense and the interagency.”
Milley’s calls with his Chinese counterpart were revealed in “Peril,” a book by reporters Bob Woodward and Robert Costa, now a CBS News correspondent. There were reports that toward the end of the Trump administration, Milley assured General Li Zuocheng of the People’s Liberation Army that the U.S. would not launch an attack against China.
Milley is set to appear in an upcoming 60 Minutes episode to discuss why he thought his calls to China were not only proper, but also necessary to avert further conflict.
Reporting by Norah O’Donnell, Keith Sharman and Roxanne Feitel.
