- Laurier LaPierre
Laurier L. LaPierre, OC , Ph.D , LL.D (born
November 21 ,1929 in Lac Megantic,Quebec ) is a retired Canadian Senator and former broadcaster,journalist andauthor . He is a member of theLiberal Party of Canada .LaPierre is best known for having been co-host with
Patrick Watson of the influential public affairs show "This Hour Has Seven Days " in the 1960s. After the show's cancellation, LaPierre moved to politics as a "star candidate " for theNew Democratic Party in the 1968 federal election. The party was hoping that he would help achieve an electoral breakthrough inQuebec , but he only managed to come in a distant second place in the riding of Lachine with 19.5% of the vote.He returned to broadcasting and writing for the next several decades until his appointment to the Senate in June 2001. As a member of the Liberal
caucus , LaPierre was an outspoken supporter ofJean Chrétien against supporters of rivalPaul Martin .LaPierre has a Ph.D in history from the
University of Toronto and has written several books including "Quebec: A Tale of Love"; "Sir Wilfrid Laurier and the Romance of Canada"; "1759: The Battle for Canada"; "Québec hier et aujourd'hui"; and, "The Apprenticeship of Canada, 1876-1914". He has written articles for "The Financial Post", "International Review", "Canadian Forum" and "Encyclopædia Britannica ". He has been an activist with EGALE, a lobby group for gay and lesbian rights, since coming out asgay in the late 1980s. He was Canada's first openly gay senator. [cite web |title=Celebrating a History of Diversity: Lesbian and Gay Life in Saskatchewan, 1971 - 2006 |publisher=University of Saskatchewan |url=http://library2.usask.ca/srsd/chronology/?year=1988 |accessdate=2007-11-17]In 2004, Senator LaPierre made news by responding in an e-mail to a
Christian regarding the then proposed hate crimeBill C-250 , with various comments, including the statement "God! you people are sick. God should strike you dead!", and commented on theBible by saying "In a book that is supposed to speak of love and you find passages of hatred: You should be ashamed of yourself of reading such books!" The senator later issued an apology. "Hate speech is best fought with a pen",National Post , 21 April 2004] He retired upon reaching the mandatory retirement age of 75 onNovember 21 2004 .In 1994, he was made an Officer of the
Order of Canada .External links
* [http://www.parl.gc.ca/information/about/people/key/bio.asp?lang=E&query=17970&s=M Federal Political biography from the Library of Parliament]
* [http://www.gg.ca/honours/search-recherche/honours-desc.asp?lang=e&TypeID=orc&id=3374 Order of Canada Citation]Footnotes
Persondata
NAME=LaPierre, Laurier L.
ALTERNATIVE NAMES=
SHORT DESCRIPTION=Canadian politician
DATE OF BIRTH=November 21 ,1929
PLACE OF BIRTH=Lac Megantic,Quebec ,Canada
DATE OF DEATH=living
PLACE OF DEATH=
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