Atlantic Baptist University accused of violating human rights
Atlantic Baptist University, the only English-language university in Moncton, New Brunswick, has been the subject of a long-running debate in the pages of the Moncton Times & Transcript. ABU has been accused of violating Canada’s Charter of Rights and Freedoms and the provincial Human Rights Act because it refuses to hire homosexuals.
In his latest response, university president Brian MacArthur maintains the policy is legal and that the dispute is more complicated than its opponents make it out to be.
[T]he [N.B. Human Rights] code recognizes that as important as it is to avoid limiting opportunities for individuals based on particular characteristics, there are legitimate and natural occasions when this is not possible, and such are not necessarily a violation of a person’s rights.
In support, Dr MacArthur cites the Supreme Court’s vindication of Trinity Western University (TWU), which went to court after the British Columbia College of Teachers refused to approve its teacher education programme, claiming that the university discriminated against homosexuals.
The Justices of the Supreme Court ruled in favour of TWU, observing that a tension can exist in law between rights and not be in violation of the law. They stated: “Any potential conflict between religious freedoms and equality rights should be resolved through the proper delineation of the rights and values involved. Properly defining the scope of the rights avoids a conflict in this case. Neither freedom of religion nor the guarantee against discrimination based on sexual orientation is absolute.”
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[I]it should be made clear that the accusation made against ABU is really based on a clash of views, not human rights. The Supreme Court decision recognizes that so long as appropriate boundaries are respected in the exercise of rights, rights can be balanced. Canadian citizens and faith communities are free to hold a traditional view of marriage and to express their belief, as are those with other views.
He concludes on an idealistic note.
A truly just society is not created by forcing everyone to accept the same view. In our pluralistic nation, differing views should be able to be voiced and expressed with equal conviction without fear of reprisal in funding or other ways.
Some vehemently disagree with that sentiment. The first comment posted at the Times & Transcript calls Dr MacArthur’s column “a whitewash” and the Supreme Court decision in the TWU case a “loophole that allows for exclusion”.
Atlantic Baptist University is affiliated with the Convention of Atlantic Baptist Churches, which also plays a role in governing Acadia University and Acadia Divinity School.
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