Pierre Poilievre responds to backlash over photo with man wearing "Straight Pride" shirt
Conservative Party Leader Pierre Poilievre has finally responded to the backlash he’s facing over a photo with a man wearing a “Straight Pride” shirt.
Poilievre joins Alberta Premier Danielle Smith in the hot seat after images of the two posing for a picture with the man at the Calgary Stampede were shared on Twitter.
User @a_picazo tweeted the photo of the Conservative MP on Monday in reply to a post about Smith’s picture.
“This, too, was a choice. And a poor one. Though, perhaps, not surprising,” said @a_picazo.
This, too, was a choice. And a poor one.
Though, perhaps, not surprising. #cdnpoli https://t.co/FNb3lUPpzvhttps://t.co/2Wi9SAqXBN pic.twitter.com/mBwI9nNCKR
ā Alheli Picazo (@a_picazo) July 10, 2023
“Thank a straight person today for your existence,” reads the front of the shirt. The back reads, “Good people disobey bad laws.”
In an email to Daily Hive, Sebastian Skamski, director of media relations for the opposition leader, provided a statement on the backlash.
“While taking photos with hundreds of people at a public Stampede event, Mr. Poilievre took a photo with this individual without reading what was written on his shirt,” said Skamski. “Mr. Poilievre does not agree with the message displayed on the T-shirt.”
“Conservatives will continue to work to build a Canada where everyone, regardless of their sexual orientation, is welcome and free to be themselves,” Skamski added.
Many aren’t buying this response.
“Don’t buy the ‘I didn’t see his shirt’ BSā¦ Yeah, you did, Pierre. Grow up,” tweeted Liberal MP Adam van Koeverden.
Poilievre didnāt march in a Pride parade & didnāt bother to show up to the Parliament Hill Pride flag raising.
But heās just thrilled to get a photo with a homophobic fan!
Donāt buy the āI didnāt see his shirtā BSā¦
Yeah you did, Pierre. Grow up.https://t.co/994hDNCvF9
ā Adam van Koeverden (@vankayak) July 10, 2023
“How much of this sort of hateful company does Pierre Poilievre have to keep before Canadians realize it’s not an accident?” added another Twitter user.
How much of this sort of hateful company does Pierre Poilievre have to keep before Canadians realize it’s not an accident?
If Trudeau was within 100 feet of a guy wearing a straight pride shirt it’d be headline news. #cdnpoli #cdnpolitics https://t.co/VSIilS2nZt
ā Mike Crisolago (@MikeCrisolago) July 11, 2023
Right-wing Canadians still slammed Poilievre, questioning him for denouncing “straight pride.”
One Twitter user says it’s telling who’s defending the homophobic stance.
REMEMBER – when people defend “Straight Pride”
They are also defending “WHITE Pride” as well
Says more about those who are defending this – than about Pierre Poilievre#cdnpoli
ā G.T. Lem ę 家 č° (@gtlem) July 11, 2023
Smith faced the heat on Monday and gave a similar response.
There have never been any laws in Canada that outlaw being straight, and most Canadians identify as heterosexual. At the same time, Canada’s LGBTQ2S+ community has faced a historically difficult fightĀ to have its legal rights recognized.
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