MLA gets emotional ahead of Pride fest

Alberta Party MLA Rick Fraser gave an emotional speech in question period Thursday, praising the bravery of his teenage son, who came out as gay.

“I want to talk about my oldest son,” he said, choking back tears. “He’s one of the strongest people I know.

“It’s because of people like him we raise the Pride flag.”

Wiping away tears, he said he has been inspired by his son and those who paved the way for him to come out.

Fraser asked how the NDP will bring people together on LGBTQ issues rather than “drive them apart for political benefit.”

Culture and Tourism Minister Ricardo Miranda, who became Alberta’s first openly gay cabinet minister in 2016, said the government will ensure LGBTQ rights aren’t eroded.

Fraser thanked colleagues in all parties for supporting his family, adding “those in this house that aren’t there yet, I hope that you get there.

“I taught my kids to love one another.”

The Edmonton Pride Festival starts Friday and runs through June 17. Miranda will be grand marshal in the parade Saturday, with NDP MLAs Estefania Cortes-Vargas and Michael Connelly.

TECH SECTOR BILL PASSES

Legislation to add 3,000 postsecondary spots over the next five years will boost Alberta’s technology sector, Advanced Education Minister Marlin Schmidt said Thursday.

Bill 2 — the Growth and Diversification Act — was approved Tuesday, launching a $50-million investment over five years that includes a scholarship program.

Two hundred new spots are set to be filled in the 2018-19 academic year.