A Winnipeg school trustee, suspended without pay since June for posting allegedly anti-transgender memes, just had her suspension extended another three months.Francine Champagne of the Louis Riel School Division (LRSD) was notified of the extension Wednesday morning. A three-month suspension is the highest allowed under legislation. She was first levied such a suspension in June, followed by another of thirty days and now one for another 90 days.“It's beyond ridiculous. I mean, the way they're operating, they're not following their own rules or procedures. At this point, I'm not surprised,” Champagne told the Western Standard.“When I was accused by the board and by the chair, she was supposed to write a formal complaint about that. She never did. She accused me on school property on her own, no witnesses there. The list goes on and on.”Champagne was elected in November 2022 and said the electorate supported her traditional views rooted in Catholic faith.“I'm representing…my voter base, who wanted positive change within the division, someone who could represent their voice,” she said.“For the last four months, I've had tremendous support. Knock on wood, but face-to-face anyway, I haven't received any negative response. Online, it's a different story, I imagine, but I don't focus on the negatives.”The memes Champagne posted on a restricted access Facebook would not have been controversial a few short years ago.“Make men masculine again. Make women feminine again. Make children innocent again,” read one post. Another implied individuals who identify as something they aren’t risk basing their lives on a lie. Another argued males who insinuate themselves into women’s intimate private spaces should be regarded as predators.Yet another post showed a 1950s-era mother and daughter around the kitchen table. The little girl says, “Mommy, I think I’m a boy,” to which the mom answers, “Well, you’re not!”In June, the board said such posts were against social media policy and Policy AC: Respect for Human Diversity. “When her transphobic social media posts were brought to our attention, we acted immediately. We hope that Trustee Champagne takes these three months to reflect on how she will reconcile with the community she serves,” read the statement.“As board members we have a duty and a responsibility to hold each other accountable…The despicable comments levelled at members of the (sexual minority) community compelled the strongest measure we could take as a board.”In 2019, the LRSD adopted a four-year plan to create a "culture" of "diversity, equity, inclusion and anti-racism." Strictly read, Policy AC applies to staff and students, not elected trustees.“The Division’s staff has the responsibility to promote respect for human sexual diversity and to support learning environments and workplaces that are free of negative conduct or actions based on gender bias, sexual stereotyping, sexual orientation and/or gender identity,” reads the policy.David Leis, vice-president of the Frontier Centre for Public Policy, told Western Standard Champagne’s predicament was a sign of the times.“She's really being harassed because she did a Facebook post [saying] there's only two genders. Can you imagine that? They want to make a precedent of her,” he said.“There was an adjudicator appointed on this stuff with the school board under the previous Conservative government. The very first day the NDP government was sworn in, they changed out that adjudicator.”Leis said the series of events was “reprehensible.”“She is standing up for parental rights. And she and her community deserve to have their democratically elected voice heard.”Champagne says a transgender agenda is harming children.“It’s causing a lot of confusion. These children, they need help and they're too young to be making these decisions. Their body isn't fully developed,” she said.“I don't support mutilation, castration, the body is being destroyed. Again, God's creation is being messed with. I can't support that. And it has nothing to do with hate for these people. In fact, it's the opposite. I love them. But they're painting me as a villain, a hateful person, which I'm not.”Champagne’s stance has cost her a teaching contract for two classes at St. Boniface University. Although her income has been wiped out and she is currently seeking new legal counsel, she says she does not stand alone.“I remain positive, I remain strong. I’m surrounded with very good people who are willing to support me all the way. It’s just one day at a time and I trust God's will for me,” she said.“It's brought me joy just to know that I'm doing the right thing. I'm standing on principle, on God's guidance, for us what we're meant to be as creation. He made man and a woman and then it goes from there.”
