With tears streaming down his face and through broken speech, Calgary-Southeast MLA Rick Fraser gave an emotional tribute to his 17-year-old son, who is gay, during question period at the final sitting of the Alberta legislature on Thursday.
“I want to talk about my oldest son, Carson, who is incredibly brave,” said Fraser, an MLA with the Alberta Party.
“He’s one of the strongest people that I know. It’s people like him why we raise the Pride flag. It’s because of the other brave people who paved the way for him to come out to the world.”
Fraser wiped his eyes with tissues as legislature members gave a round applause before he continued.
“Because of him and those other brave people, they changed me. They inspire people like me and showed us that God created us in his image and he doesn’t make mistakes.”
Following another round of applause, Fraser went on to ask the premier how the NDP government is protecting people in the LGBTQ community and improving LGBTQ rights by bringing people together instead of driving them apart.
NDP MLA and minister of Culture and Tourism, Ricardo Miranda, responded to the emotional plea, saying in the three years he’s known Fraser, he’s seen him come a long way in embracing people in the LGBTQ community.
“I will say to the member that the members on this side of the house have always and will always continue to fight for every single LGBTQ Albertan and ensure that their rights are never taken away from them despite what the others would like to see,” Miranda said.
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Miranda – along with fellow MLA Michael Connolly – were the first openly gay candidates to be elected in Calgary and in Alberta.
WATCH: Pride flag raised at Alberta Legislature
LGBTQ rights has been at the centre of much conversation in the legislature after the newly formed United Conservative Party (UCP) wanted to see policy put in place which would see that parents are told if their children join gay-straight alliances (GSAs) at schools.
In response, Education Minister David Eggen introduced legislation that would make sure students joining GSAs would have their privacy protected. It was passed just two weeks later.
This spring, a group of parents and schools filed a court challenge against Bill 24, which stated that by protecting the children, the bill violated parents’ rights.
Fraser said that as a family of faith, his children were raised “not to subscribe to organized religion but to find their faith in Christ and develop a relationship that’s not based on tradition of boundaries.”
“We taught our kids to love one another,” he said.
“I want to thank those in the government caucus, the United Conservative (Party) caucus, my independent friends in the Alberta Party caucus that have supported my son and my family.
“And those in this house that aren’t there yet, I hope that you get there. Like I said, I taught my kids to love one another.”
He then asked what the NDP government was doing to bridge the political divide on the issue.
Miranda responded saying the government has worked to meet with people in the LGBTQ community across the province and to make sure they feel safe in schools.
“Unfortunately, what we have seen, Mr. Speaker, is the politicization of this issue of having GSAs in schools for example, and that doesn’t help,” he said.
“Mr. Speaker, we will not stand for that. What we will do is ensure that every single student in this province can feel safe when they go to school.”
Following another question about support for families of children that have come out to their parents, Miranda said the NDP government would not stand for children to be outed before they’re ready.
Fraser closed his remarks by tearfully wishing all Albertans, and his family, a happy Pride Month.
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