While I was reading Yahoo! News today, I came across this article which discussed British Columbia's New Democratic Party's affirmative-action rules:
According to the BC NDP's affirmative-action rules, [being "a straight, old, able-bodied, white guy"] makes him ineligible to run in the next election in his own riding. The NDP's equity rule, mandates the next NDP candidate in Maple Ridge must be a woman, or a member of an under-represented group: "Persons of colour, gay/lesbian/bi/transgender people, youth, aboriginal peoples and persons with disabilities."
I was surprised that something like this could exist in this day and age, as one might think that selecting people for jobs based on colour, sex, religion, or creed would have gone to the rubbish bin of history along with segregated bathrooms and Robert Borden's campaign slogans. However, when discussing this with folks that are more politically inclined today, I've heard multiple times that this is not only allowed (and behind some closed doors, encouraged), but that there is an exception in the Charter that allows for such kind of hiring practices by the government and the parties that wish to run.
So, after surfing for confirmation of such ... bizarre information, and finding that, to quote Bones "I'm a programmer, not a lawyer," I turn to here to clarify if I'm getting faulty information or if Canada has only added a "No" in front of Robert Borden's infamous campaign slogan.
Does the NDP's hiring practice violate Canada's Charter of Rights and Freedoms?
sexism
tag, notracism
. See also 'affirmative action'.