A former Red Deer pastor will appeal a human rights ruling ordering him to pay $7,000 in fines and write an apology for an anti-gay letter published in the Red Deer Advocate nearly six years ago.

The Alberta Human Rights and Citizenship Commission issued a written order on May 30. It stated that Stephen Boissoin and The Concerned Christian Coalition must pay former Red Deer school teacher Darren Lund $5,000 in damages.

Another $2,000 must be paid to Janelle Dodd, one of Lund’s witnesses who spoke at an earlier commission hearing.

“I think the ruling seems quite fair to me,” said Lund, who now lives in Calgary, on Friday. “I just hope there will be some educational value to the community — that we can develop a society where everybody enjoys the same freedoms.”

Boissoin’s letter to the editor was published in the June 17, 2002, edition of the Advocate. In it, he compared homosexuals to pedophiles and drug dealers. Boissoin was the executive director of the Christian Coalition at the time.

Lund, who had launched an anti-prejudice program with students at Lindsay Thurber Comprehensive High School, filed a complaint with the human rights commission.

He argued that Boissoin’s written statements represented a hate crime after a gay teen was attacked in Red Deer shortly after the letter was published.

Last November, the commission ruled in favour of Lund, saying Boissoin and the coalition had violated human rights law because the letter likely exposed gays to hatred and contempt.

The May 30 decision states that Boissoin and the coalition must stop publishing in all forms of media any “disparaging remarks” about gays and homosexuals. Similar remarks cannot be made against Lund and his witnesses.

Boissoin has a website that discusses a “gay agenda” in Canadian schools.

Further, Boissoin and the coalition are to provide Lund with a written apology.

“I certainly didn’t request an apology, so that was a bit of a surprise,” said Lund. “I don’t see the value in an insincere apology.”

Boissoin and the coalition must also ask the Advocate to publish a copy of the ruling, and further request the publishing of Boissoin’s written apology for contravening the Human Rights Citizenship and Multiculturalism Act.

“No one has requested anything of us officially, yet,” said Advocate publisher Fred Gorman. “When they do, we’ll look at our options then and what our decision will be.”

Calgary lawyer Gerald Chipeur said he has been instructed by his client Boissoin to appeal the commission’s ruling and most recent order. Boissoin declined comment on Friday.

“We will be filing our appeal this month and then it will be heard before a Court of Queen’s Bench judge sometime over the next 12 months,” Chipeur said.

Chipeur said they will argue their case on three grounds.

For one thing, he said the panel erred when it said Boissoin had contravened the Human Rights Citizenship and Multiculturalism Act.

Secondly, Chipeur will argue the Alberta government doesn’t have the constitutional right to censor free speech.

He referred to a decision from the 1940s when the Social Credit government tried to control the free speech of newspapers.

“The Supreme Court of Canada said the Alberta government didn’t have that power,” Chipeur said. “We’re saying the same laws of 60 years ago still apply to today.”

Chipeur will further argue that the commission’s ruling doesn’t comply with the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, which he said guarantees freedom of expression.

The Alberta Human Rights and Citizenship Commission, an independent body of the provincial government, reports to the minister of culture and community spirit.

Contact Laura Tester at ltester@reddeeradvocate.com