Suspension of Ontario Trustee Against ‘Woke Politics’ Was Related to Public Criticism of Board, Chair, Documents Show

The suspension of an Ontario trustee vocal against “woke politics” on his school board was allegedly related to the trustee publically criticising the collective decisions of the board and the actions of the chairman, according to newly-released documents.

Mike Ramsay, who has been a Waterloo Region District School Board (WRDSB) trustee for over 30 years, posted on Twitter on Oct. 2 that he is “now permitted to legally share the Code of Conduct Complaint” laid against him in February 2022, along with documents the school board presented in court in response to Ramsay’s legal challenge of the suspension.

In his tweet, Ramsay said the documents show his suspension was partially related to his sharing of social media posts from a journalist that contained criticism of WRDSB chairman Scott Piatkowski’s treatment of teacher Carolyn Burjoski.

On Jan. 17, WRDSB teacher Carolyn Burjoski appeared before the board to raise concerns she had about the age-appropriateness of sexual content contained in certain school library materials. Piatkowski cut Burjoski’s presentation short and she was subsequently removed from the virtual meeting.

At the next meeting on Jan. 24, Ramsay demanded that Piatkowski apologize for his treatment of Burjoski, but the chairman refused. Several months later, the board voted to suspend Ramsay from meetings from June to September 2022 for allegedly violating the trustee code of conduct.

At the time of Ramsay’s suspension, neither the complaint filed against him nor the board’s reasons for upholding it were released to the public. The board’s vote to suspend Ramsay took place in a closed meeting.

‘Woke Politics’

In January, Ramsay told The Epoch Times that Piatkowski was engaging in “moral panic” by shutting down debate about the content in some children’s books on gender transition that deals with sexuality.

“The chair and majority of my colleagues have been exploiting for political gain the fears and concerns of not only our transgender friends and neighbours, but also friends and neighbours that are asking legitimate questions,” Ramsay said.

In February, Ramsay signed and shared a petition on Facebook asking the Ontario government to “leave woke politics out of Ontario schools.”

In his recent Twitter post, Ramsay said another reason behind the complaint against him was that he shared a Waterloo Region Record opinion piece on Twitter, written by his fellow WRDSB trustee Cindy Watson. 

In the piece published in January, Watson argued that public consultation is “lacking” in the WRDSB and said that “broad consultation hasn’t happened for decisions that impact students, parents and staff the most, for the last few years.”

The complaint against Ramsay, which was included in the documents he posted online, accused Ramsay of violating certain code-of-conduct bylaws when he criticised the WRDSB’s Twitter page for focusing on negative narratives surrounding the Freedom Convoy truckers’ protest in Ottawa.

The complainant also said that Ramsay’s support of the petition against “woke politics” in schools violated a bylaw requiring trustees to “nurture a culture that supports student academic success and provides an environment that promotes well-being” and also to “provide a safe environment to promote student learning.”

Since Ramsay supported the petition against “woke politics,” the complainant said, “the conclusion can be drawn that he disagrees with actions being taken by the WRDSB and the Ministry of Education” and that his disagreement undermines the board’s authority.

“Instead of upholding decisions made at the Board, by staff of the WRDSB or by the Ministry of Education, instead of striving to understand and explain those decisions as required by the Education Act, instead of trying to encourage confidence in public education, Trustee Ramsay is attempting to discredit the WRDSB and public education in Ontario,” read the complaint.

In August, Ramsay announced that he was challenging the board’s decision to suspend him based on what he called “unconstitutional behaviour.”

In a draft of the court’s record of proceedings made public by Ramsay, Piatkowski defended the board’s decision, arguing that Ramsay violated several sections of the WRDSB Code of Conduct leading up to his suspension.

Piatkowski said one of Ramsay’s alleged violations was his failure to uphold board decisions.

“For example, he has repeatedly spoken out against the decision of the Board … to ask the Chief Medical Officer of Health and Minister of Education to expand the mask mandate in schools for an additional two weeks after March Break,” Piatkowski said.

Legal Counsel

Piatkowski also said Ramsay’s posts and comments on Twitter were responsible for “amplifying” online attacks against him.

“Trustee Ramsay has publicly belittled those of us who have taken steps to protect our personal safety and mental health by limiting our social media to approved followers,” said Piatkowski. “These actions have put us in danger.”

The Epoch Times reached out to both Piatkowski and Ramsay for comment.

Piatkowski didn’t provide a comment, but said to refer to his recent statement to CTV News Kitchener.

“The Trustee Code of Conduct was unanimously adopted by, and applies equally to, all Trustees,” Piatkowski told CTV. “I’m disappointed that a Trustee who chose to breach it is also choosing to share information publicly that all Trustees are required to keep confidential. I’m equally troubled that the actions of this Trustee continue to subject the Board to unnecessary legal expenses.”

Ramsay didn’t respond to the request for comment. In response to Piatkowski’s statement to CTV, Ramsay posted a YouTube video link on Twitter leading to a clip from the Bob Marley song “Could You Be Loved,” in which Marley repeats, “Don’t let them fool you.”

Ramsay also on Twitter alluded to Piatkowski’s comments on “unnecessary legal expenses.” Reacting to a Twitter post by journalist Sue-Ann Levy who said Piatkowski subjected Ramsay “to a witch hunt using a downtown T.O. law firm,” with costs allegedly “exceeding $150K,” Ramsay said he had to pay out of pocket for his legal advice, unlike the board, until he started receiving pro bono help.

When Ramsay filed his challenge against the meeting ban in August, he said he is seeking a court order that would require the board to declare its actions “unreasonable” and a violation of his Charter rights.

“The majority of the current Board are sacrificing public interest in favour of a boutique ideology,” he said. “They abused and weaponized the Board’s rules to silence their opponents.”

Isaac Teo and Jared Gnam contributed to this report.

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Peter Wilson is a reporter based in Ontario, Canada.