Ontario’s education minister says she is “pleased and encouraged” the Halton Catholic board has finally put a pause on a controversial policy that limited student fundraising to charities that align with religious values. “It was clear that there were a number of diverse voices in the community who had strong opinions on this motion and really wanted to be heard,” Indira Naidoo-Harris said in an interview. “I’m looking forward to having them consider all of the voices in their community.”In February, the board voted in favour of a “Sanctity of Life” motion, meaning it would “not provide or facilitate any financial donations to any charities or non-profits that publicly support, either directly or indirectly, abortion, contraception, sterilization, euthanasia or embryonic stem cell research.”The lack of public input on the move prompted an outcry from teachers, parents and students — who held a number of school walkouts in protest — and even a letter from Naidoo-Harris requesting the pause, which trustees initially rebuffed. However, on Tuesday night, they voted to put the motion on hold until “the completion of community consultations.”

Source: thestar May 02, 2018 21:45 UTC