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A school trustee in\u00a0Chilliwack,\u00a0B.C., has resigned from his position, saying he “no longer feels safe in expressing” himself after the\u00a0B.C. Human Rights Tribunal’s decision to fine former trustee Barry Neufeld $750,000.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Laurie Throness says in a statement that he can’t do his job or speak his mind freely without “worrying about accusations of workplace discrimination,” after the tribunal found Neufeld violated the human rights code by publishing hate speech against LGBTQ+ people.\u00a0<\/p>\n
He says the tribunal’s decision will place a “chill on public discourse.”\u00a0<\/p>\n
He adds that he felt he couldn’t call for the suspension of sexual orientation and gender identity education in his capacity as a trustee after the mass shooting in Tumbler Ridge where eight people were killed.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Throness, who’s also a former member of the\u00a0B.C. legislature, says school trustees across the province will no longer comment on “sensitive topics” including gender or inclusivity because of the “legal ordeal” that Neufeld went through.\u00a0<\/p>\n