Ontario mayor reportedly has bank account garnished after fined for refusing to celebrate Pride month

On November 20, the Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario ruled that the township of Emo and its mayor, Harold McQuaker, 77, had discriminated against an LGBTQ group, under the Ontario Human Rights Code, by denying its request to proclaim June as Pride Month. Borderland Pride had requested Emo make the Pride Month declaration and requested the township fly a "LGBTQ2" flag, despite Emo not having an official flag pole.

However, McQuaker publicly said that he wouldn't pay the fine, calling it "extortion."

"Mayor McQuaker's comments in the Toronto Sun and other media were very clear that he did not respect nor intend to comply with the Tribunal's orders," Borderland Pride said in an email to the outlet. "Consequently, it was apparent he would not voluntarily make payment of the damages ordered. We took immediate action to garnish his bank account."

Borderland Pride has since shared several posts on their Facebook account mocking the mayor and his defenders.

The ruling came as a result of a 2020 incident in which the town was approached by Borderland Pride asking Emo to declare June Pride Month.

The group's request also included a draft proclamation, containing clauses such as "pride is necessary to show community support and belonging for LGBTQ2 individuals" and "the diversity of sexual orientation, gender identity, and gender expression represents a positive contribution to society."

The request was defeated by a 3-2 vote at a later Emo township council meeting. 

McQuaker's remarks about the flag were seen as particularly offensive to the Human Rights Tribunal vice-chair, who said she found the remark "demeaning and disparaging of the LGBTQ2 community of which Borderland Pride is a member and therefore constituted discrimination under the Code."

Fox News' Michael Lee contributed to this report.