BC Conservatives fire comms officer over post disputing “mass graves” hoax
The BC Conservatives have fired a communications officer following a post she made criticizing the province’s use of the Orange Shirt and flag in the legislature.
The BC Conservatives have fired a communications officer following a post she made criticizing the province’s use of the Orange Shirt and flag in the legislature, which she said perpetuated “untruths” around claims that the graves of 215 children were allegedly discovered at the Kamloops Residential School.
Lindsay Shepherd, a former True North journalist and long-time advocate for free speech, announced on Wednesday that she had been fired from her role as a comms officer with the BC Conservatives.
“Today, BC Conservative Leader John Rustad fired me from my position as Comms Officer with the Conservative Party of BC Caucus. It was because of this tweet,” Shepherd announced in a post on X. “I am a mother of two young children, and I am 32 weeks pregnant -- I was about to go on maternity leave.”
Shepherd said that a post she made, which was deleted following backlash from the BC NDP and pressure from the media, was the reason for the firing.
“The Orange Shirt and the Orange Flag perpetuate untruths about Canadian history, such as the grandest lie of all that 215 children’s graves were unearthed in Kamloops,” the post in question reads. “It is a disgrace that this fake flag flies in front of the provincial parliament buildings, and it is a disgrace to see the shirt of lies framed prominently and permanently beside the coat of arms so that locals and tourists cannot view our insignia without having their eye drawn and redirected to the Orange Shirt.”
A string of violence has been perpetrated against the Christian community since the still-unproven claims of discovering unmarked graves near a residential school in Kamloops, B.C, were made in 2021.
Since then, 123 Christian churches have been vandalized, burned to the ground or desecrated.
However, no graves have yet been discovered.
Neither Rustad nor the BC Conservatives were immediately available for comment.
Shepherd has been a long-time advocate for freedom of expression in Canada and has authored two books.
She wrote a children’s book, which True North published, titled “A Day with Sir John A,” educating children and parents about Canada’s first Prime Minister, meant to counter narratives which demonize Canada’s history.
Shepherd also authored “Diversity & Exclusion: Confronting the Campus Free Speech Crisis,” about her challenges navigating censorship at Wilfrid Laurier University when she dared to show a clip of academic Jordan Peterson speaking. Individuals in her class had complained, saying Shepherd was “transphobic” for showing a video of Peterson in class.
She filed a lawsuit against the university, two professors, and a staff member and student, alleging harassment, intentional infliction of nervous shock, negligence, and constructive dismissal.
Peterson also filed a lawsuit against the university and staff members in the meeting for defamation.
Both lawsuits were dismissed in 2024.
Disclaimer: Lindsay Shepherd is married to True North’s managing editor. He had no role in assigning, writing or editing this article.