Education Minister Kathleen Wynne has recently spoken out against John Tory's plan to extend public monies to faith-based schools in the province of Ontario. She has called the proposal too costly, suggesting that the $400 million price tag estimated by Tory will end up being closer to $500 million.
While I agree with Wynne that public monies shouldn't be extended to private faith-based schools (we disagree on money for Catholic schools though), it seems to me that she is opposing this extended funding for all the wrong reasons. Shouldn't she be opposing it because it will lead to segregation and division within the school system and will hamper interaction between students of different faiths? Shouldn't she be opposing the extended funding because a common school system can best serve Ontario's children? Shouldn't she be opposing the extended funding because the church/mosque/synagogue/temple etc. and state should be separate?
Furthermore, if extending state funding to all forms of faith based education was the correct thing to do- which by the way it isn't- shouldn't it be supported at virtually any cost? Can the Liberals really put a price tag on equality? I guess they can.
Wynne's opposition to extending funding to other faith based because of the cost involved, while at the same time supporting funding for Catholic education, is shallow and hypocritical.
That being said, the race in Don Valley West between Wynne and Tory will prove to be one of the most exciting races this October.
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Canada does not support a separation of "church and state"; that is a U.S. endeavor. Here we embrace minority cultures and help them survive - Mosaic versus U.S. Melting Pot. Canada's federal and provincial governments have heritage grant programs for international languages and minority cultures. Canada's governments fund religious and cultural events, community centers, camps etc. All provinces except Newfoundland and the Maritimes subsidize faith-based schools and many other school choices. Ontario fully funds one third of its students in Catholic schools with no apparent damage to our social fabric. We also fund arts-based, sports-based, gifted programs, anger management schools as well as a gay/lesbian high school in Toronto. We fully fund Native and French schools. Within three Catholic school boards we fund five Ukrainian Eastern Rite/Byzantine schools which are a type of Catholism which recognizes the Roman Catholic Vatican as its religious authority. The Ukrainian Heritage and language programs are funded by government grants, churches and parents. The Eastern Rite religious studies, with prayers in an old slavic language, are funded through the Catholic school board. Why can't the 7% of non-funded faith-based schools (2% of the total student population) be funded in a similar manner? Non-Catholic faiths are asking not to be double-billed with tuition and taxes. If these non-funded kids switched to public school tomorrow, which is their right, where would Minister Wynne find the money? When have we ever discriminated against minority religions with the excuse that we can't afford to treat them fairly?
Gay marriage was an expensive proposition (increased employer insurance) and no one ever argued against it on the basis of cost!
Don't like funding for any religious schools, including the catholic board? Vote Green. They're the only party who's said they oppose funding catholic education.
Gila, part of the problem is that Canada doesn't fully recognize the seperation of church and state. I think it really ought to.
Oh, and Manitoba also doesn't fund a seperate board, and Quebec voted to merge the two systems (Catholic and non-denominational) into language based systems.
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