The tyranny of the bureaucracy and the weaponization of codes of conduct

Mike Ramsay is another victim of the weaponization of disciplinary hearings against those accused of heresy Author of the article: Michael Higgins Published Aug 28, 2023  •  Last updated Aug 28, 2023  •  5 minute read 456 Comments

Nineteen months ago, Mike Ramsay — a school trustee and former police officer who also happens to be Black — was in a board meeting when he came to the defence of a teacher he had never met. 

The cost to him so far: being called a white supremacist; being shunned; being censured by his school board; being banned from meetings; enduring a lengthy court battle; and, last month, facing the threat of another disciplinary hearing. 

Ramsay is another victim of the weaponization of disciplinary hearings against those accused of heresy, of not toeing the party line on gender identity or racial politics, or for simply objecting to what is being taught to children in schools. Or for tweeting something some people find objectionable. 

The most high-profile victim of the tyranny of the bureaucracy is Jordan Peterson, who recently lost a court battle against the College of Psychologists of Ontario. Peterson has been ordered by the college to undergo “coaching” for some tweets that the college found to be unbecoming a psychologist. 

Incredibly, in Peterson’s case, he hasn’t been found guilty of anything, there’s been no disciplinary hearing, it is simply punishment by fiat. 

This weaponization of codes of conduct is happening across Canada and is felt by many people who do not enjoy Peterson’s high profile.

Nurse Amy Hamm is facing disciplinary action for believing in biology and liking a “I (heart) J.K. Rowling” billboard. 

Chanel Pfahl, then a teacher in Barrie, Ont., faced action because of a Facebook post that opposed indoctrinating children with critical race theory.

Jim McMurtry, a teacher of 40 years with a master’s degree in the history of education, was fired by the Abbotsford School District for pointing out that most children in Indian residential schools died from tuberculosis and other diseases.

For Mike Ramsay, his troubles came out of the blue during a meeting of Ontario’s Waterloo Region District School Board (WRDSB) in January 2022. 

Carolyn Burjoski, an English teacher with 20 years’ experience, was giving a presentation regarding her concerns about some of the reading material in elementary school libraries. Some books were being culled — like Dr. Seuss — while new books on diversity were being added.

She highlighted two new books, “Rick” by Alex Gina, where a young boy is encouraged to question his sexuality and eventually declares he is asexual, and “The Other Boy” by M.G. Hennessy, where a female teen later identifies as a boy. 

“Some of the books make it seem simple, even cool, to take puberty blockers and opposite sex hormones,” she told the board. But elementary students are just children. “Let them grow up in their own time and stop pressuring them to be sexual so soon,” she said.

She was eventually shut down by then-chairmen Scott Piatkowski over concerns she was breaching Ontario’s human rights code. Ramsay tried to defend Burjoski and wanted her presentation to continue but was overruled by a 5-4 vote. 

A month later, Ramsay faced a code of conduct complaint. The actual complaint and the WRDSB’s actions would have remained secret because of a confidentiality clause, but once Ramsay launched a legal action the documents became public. 

What was he accused of? “He disagrees with actions being taken by the WRDSB,” according to the complaint, and was not upholding decisions made by the board.  

His Twitter account was scoured. He was accused of retweeting a newspaper article, written by a colleague, that was critical of the board. He retweeted someone who called the WRDSB a “farce,” and in another tweet indicated that he agreed with a comment about the “woke war on critics.” He was guilty, according to the complaint, of tweeting or retweeting comments that “amplify harm” and “sow doubt.” 

He was accused of signing a petition that urged Ontario’s educational authorities to keep woke politics and policies out of schools. He didn’t write the petition, he just signed it, and for that has faced persecution. 

“Their interpretation of what constitutes a breach (of the code of conduct) in my mind is anything they don’t like that I’m saying. That’s the only criteria I think they’re using,” Ramsay said in an interview. 

“The primary focus nowadays right across our province, and in fact across our country, is to be teaching kids that one group based on their colour are the oppressors; and one group based on their racial background or colour are the oppressed. I don’t agree with that. I don’t believe that is a way forward and it runs contrary to the dream espoused by Martin Luther King. We have a group on the radical left who want to fight battles that have already been won.”

In July 2022, he was informed that he had breached of the board’s code of conduct by refusing to accept the decisions of the chair and the board, by accusing fellow trustees of unlawful conduct and by disclosing confidential information. He was censured and banned from meetings until September. He has launched a judicial review of that finding and is awaiting a decision.

Ramsay has been elected nine times as a trustee and has served continually since 2000. His aim is to “bring the parent voice to the board table, to bring the concerns of parents.” The code of conduct, he said, “is being used as a weapon to shut down dissenting voices. (And) that’s right across Canada. It’s part of this identity politics that in my mind is pretty dangerous.” 

“There is a severe cost” to fighting, Ramsay said. “You get shunned. You know how ridiculous it got? I’m Black, but I was called a white supremacist.” 

Ramsay said he was often reminded of the words of a Crown prosecutor: if you knew what something was going to cost in advance, maybe you would negotiate the price. 

Ramsay has an outlook on some matters that is now considered old fashioned and subject not just to ridicule, but to disciplinary action: he believes in a democratic society where people should be able to voice dissenting opinions; he believes children should be taught about history — the good and the bad; and he believes parents should have a voice at school board meetings. 

While being shunned by some, he has also had many people approach him offering support. Last year, as his troubles began, a stranger reached out offering kindness and compassion.

That stranger was Richard Bilkszto, a principal with the Toronto District School Board who was facing his own ordeal. Bilkszto had opposed some racial teachings during a diversity, equity and inclusion training session and ended up being bullied and facing an insinuation that he was a white supremacist, according to a lawsuit.

Bilkszto said, “I have an idea what you’re going through. You have my support,” according to Ramsay. The pair established a telephone and online relationship and in May, Ramsay and Bilkszto met for lunch. It was their first and last meeting. Last month, Richard Bilkszto killed himself.

Sometimes there’s a cost to fighting.