Surprise! It turns out that Conservative MP Michael Cooper quotes of the New Zealand mosque attacker were not his only Anti-Moslem comments.
Conservative MP Michael Cooper made comments deriding "goat herder cultures" during a discussion about Islam's compatibility with Canadian democracy when he was a law student at the University of Alberta a decade ago, according to two lawyers who have come forward to talk about the incident.
The lawyers allege the comments were made during a heated discussion in a seminar on multiculturalism and the minority rights section of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms, with Cooper arguing that some cultures were incompatible with Canada's "Judeo-Christian values."
Contacted by CBC News this week, Cooper denied the allegation and said the incident was being mischaracterized. ...
Cooper said he has little recollection of his comments during the discussion. "I do recall suggesting that Canada was founded on Judeo-Christian principles. And I recall that some members of the class didn't take kindly to that comment. But again, there was a lot of back and forth, a lot of vigorous debate, and then that's all that I recall."
The lawyers making the allegations — both former classmates of Cooper — are Balqees Mihirig, who now practises law in New York City, and Brock Roe, who practises in Saskatoon. ...
Mihirig and Roe said the University of Alberta incident happened during an advanced constitutional law class in late 2008 near the end of a seminar on the Charter of Rights — specifically, the sections dealing with multiculturalism and minority rights. ...
"Mr. Cooper had much to say about the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, and it was generally not positive. I frequently found myself challenging his statements," Mihirig writes in a letter describing her recollection of events. "It was unpleasant, and negatively impacted my experience at law school. One such exchange became particularly heated after Mr. Cooper, declared Canada to be a 'Judeo-Christian civilization' that is incompatible with 'goat herder cultures.' ...
Mihirig and Roe said the committee episode led them to conclude that Cooper had not changed his views, and both felt that the punishment — removing Cooper from the justice committee — was insufficient. ...
After contacting Cooper, CBC News heard from two other former University of Alberta students. Both said they were in the same classroom that day; one had written the seminar presentation on which Cooper was commenting. Both said they had been asked to come forward by the MP to address the allegation. The two former students, now practicing lawyers, said they remembered the flare-up in class, but did not recall hearing the 'goat herder' comment. Both declined to put their names on the record. ...
That lawyer, who described himself as a former Conservative who now supports Maxime Bernier's People's Party of Canada, said Cooper had been expressing support for the arguments in his presentation when the dispute occurred. ...
CBC News contacted two other individuals who attended the seminar (CBC contacted seven seminar participants in total — the majority of those who were present in the classroom). Neither wished to be named.
One told CBC News that he recalled the 'goat herder' comment with absolute certainty, and that the incident had shocked him. The other did not recall the exact words used, but told CBC News that he was "100 per cent" confident Cooper had directed "racist" comments at Mihirig, the only Muslim in the room. He said that Cooper had been "angry" and "beet-red" when he made the remarks.
https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/michael-cooper-goat-herder-cultures-1.5...
