Jonathon Van Maren is a communications consultant with The Acacia Group, a legal consultancy providing services to churches, charities, non-profits and religious institutionsWhen Canadian progressives talk about “inclusion,” you can be sure that Christians are about to be excluded.When the Canadian Armed Forces issued a directive instructing chaplains that they must be “inclusive” at Remembrance Day ceremonies, for example, they meant that Christian prayers and traditional symbolism were to be excluded, especially because — as a 2022 report from the DND noted — Christianity is “a source of suffering and intergenerational trauma” for many Canadians, with this being “especially true for many lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer and two-spirited members of Canadian society.”When progressives speak of “inclusivity,” they expect people to understand that this means aggressively celebrating physical differences while aggressively enforcing ideological conformity. Comfort Sakoma-Fadugba, the former vice-chair of the Vancouver Police Board, found this out the hard way. After Sakoma-Fadugba posted comments to her social media decrying the deliberate removal of Christian values from Canada’s public square, she was promptly asked to resign..EXCLUSIVE: Ousted VPB co-chair defends 'Christian values' comment, reiterates need for Canadian national identity.Sakoma-Fadugba is a Nigerian-Canadian, and when she was hired in 2022, the Board celebrated her “impressive background” in “expanding equity, diversity, and inclusion in all aspects of life” — but she seems to have made the mistake of being too inclusive and assuming that the word “all” meant, you know, “all.”In a series of comments posted to her social media, she decried the systematic erasure of “Christian values from the lives of our children,” noting that they are being “replaced by those of a new dominant group.” She cited the example of her son being asked to participate in a Hindu Diwali celebration at school.Sakoma-Fadugba has nothing against Hinduism per se — she emphasized that “what I want is for Canada to remain true to its own roots — rooted in its unique values and identity, which is what has always made us who we are,” and that as such Christianity should remain “dominant”—that is, the core identity of the country. “We need to move past the woke culture that has led to the removal of Canadian heroes like Terry Fox from our passports, and the erasure of veterans from the same,” she stated. “It's time to return to the moral fabric of Canadian society.”She appears not to realize that all this is heresy now. .VAN MAREN: Did nobody tell Monique LaGrange the rules had changed?.Prime Minister Justin Trudeau claimed in 2015 that Canada has no “core identity,” by which he means Canadian Christianity has been lagely erased — or at least, that this is an aspiration of progressives like himself. Sakoma-Fadugba was immediately condemned by fellow vice-chair Frank Chong in a statement on November 22, who clearly absorbed the lessons of DEI more thoroughly:"Recent statements posted on social media by the vice chair of the Vancouver Police Board do not reflect the values of the Board and are inconsistent with our code of conduct. While I value the many contributions Comfort Sakoma-Fadugba has made as a member of this Board since 2022, these statements have made her continued service on the Board untenable. This afternoon, I requested and received Comfort’s resignation from the Vancouver Police Board."Two days ago, Sakoma-Fadugba responded in a video and statement posted to her Instagram, noting that “a troubling undercurrent of suppression stifles free expression. Freedom of speech is often touted as a fundamental right, but it comes with invisible chains that bind those who voice dissenting opinions. Many find themselves silenced by fear of backlash and vilification.” While over 20 media platforms covered her story, she noted, only two reached out to her for her own perspective.She concluded: "I faced pressure to resign from the Vancouver Police Board for expressing concerns shared by millions, including the National Leader of the Conservative Party. This reflects a broader issue where legitimate concerns can lead to repercussions, eroding the foundations of our society. I want to extend my heartfelt thanks to the hundreds of Canadians from coast to coast who have sent me messages of support. Your encouragement means the world to me. I love this country and will fight for it because my son deserves to grow up in a place where everyone can thrive authentically, without fear of persecution.In another comment, she asked plaintively: “In a place where even a Black woman can be accused of being racist and a Christian woman labeled a fascist, what hope do others have to raise their voices?”It’s a good question. The reality is that Sakoma-Fadugba is discovering what it means to be a Christian in Canada in 2024. (As is the Salvation Army.)Persecution? No, not yet—although the fact that a Christian of Nigerian origin uses that term is somewhat chilling. She is surely not unaware of what that word can mean. But what we are seeing is systematic scapegoating. All religions can be celebrated — Diwali, Ramadan — except for Christianity.Why? Because Canada’s progressives do not see Christianity as our “core identity.” They see it as our original sin, a source of “suffering and intergenerational trauma,” as per the DND statement above.For Canada to rise they think, it must emerge from the ashes of her former Christianity and her smouldering churches...Jonathon Van Maren is a communications consultant with The Acacia Group, a legal consultancy providing services to churches, charities, non-profits and religious institutions.
