Hamilton, Ont., Mayor Andrea Horwath has ordered the removal of a billboard that featured a message opposing medical transition for minors, calling it “transphobic.” Meanwhile, the group behind the billboard says the decision violates Charter rights, and that it will launch a legal challenge against the order.
The billboard displays the text “LetKidsBe.ca.” Below the text is the message, “Stop medical transitions for minors.” It was paid for by Christian political advocacy group Association for Reformed Political Action (ARPA) as part of its “LetKidsBe.ca” campaign, which included similar ads on buses in London, Ont., earlier this year.
Horwath, a former leader of the Ontario NDP, said in an Aug. 8 statement that while the billboard, located on Lincoln Alexander Parkway, was not city-owned, it was on city-leased space. She said that “city advertising rules were not followed,” and directed Astral Media, the company in charge of the billboard space, to remove it….