Related ArticlesForcing homeless into shelters for Olympics Mayor promises to protect free speech during Olympics Vancouver Pride House planned for 2010 Games Queers should be concerned about Olympic censorship More National Headlines Toronto woman becomes first trans Body Worlds donor Xtra shuffles editorial deck Ontario MPP reintroduces trans rights bill Precious opens Fri, Nov 20 in Toronto East Vancouver’s queer member of Parliament, Libby Davies, is calling for a code of conduct for security forces during the 2010 Winter Olympic Games. A spokesperson for the Games’ Integrated Security Unit (ISU) says Davies will need to provide a letter detailing what form of code she would like to see. “We would provide a response,” promises ISU spokesperson Cpl Jen Allan. Davies says such a code should be printed and circulated. She says it could be a popular tool for holding the more than 14,000 police, military and private security officers accountable for their behaviour during the Games.

A recently released guidebook for new immigrants, Discover Canada, is a mixed bag of trivia and ideology. The handbook has an explicit section on gender equality, where it condemns the “barbaric cultural practices” of spousal abuse, honour killings and female genital mutilation. There is a section on diversity that gives a shout out to atheism but leaves out gays or lesbians. Queer people are relegated to a sidebar next to a photo of Mark Tewksbury, in the section devoted to sports, arts and culture. And that has MPs shaking their heads. “I always worried that it was more of a political, ideological message more than anything else,” says lesbian NDP MP Libby Davies of the guide.