One Of Canada's Brand New Loonies Is Getting Blasted On Twitter Right Now
There is controversy surrounding the new coin.
Canada's new loonie went into circulation today. The Royal Canadian Mint unveiled the brand new coin to the public today during an official ceremony in Toronto. According to them, it's actually the first ever circulation coin that recognizes and commemorates LGBTQ2 rights in the whole world. However, not everyone's happy about it – Canadians have taken to social media to talk about the new coin, and tweets about Canada's $1 LGBTQ loonie are blasting the new coin.
The coin was approved by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau last year in December. It comes after new legislation from the federal government that became effective last summer and was part of the prime minister's public apology to the LGBTQ2 community in Canada for the discrimination they previously faced from officials and authorities, according to CBC News.
"On April 23rd, 2019 commemorate 50 years since Canada took the first step towards decriminalizing homosexuality," says The Royal Canadian Mint on their website. "Look for the Equality Dollar in your change."
On top of the coin, the federal government has also committed $145 million dollars to compensate members of the LGBTQ community that were discriminated by previous governments, according to The Globe and Mail.
Besides what steps have been taken, several people are arguing that much more progress still needs to be made. There is controversy surrounding the coin, with some saying that the coin is a superficial effort and an empty gesture.
While some people welcome the coin as a symbol of progress, others are also saying that the new loonie may make it seem like LGBTQ2 equality has been achieved in Canada but much more work actually needs to be done. Experts and historians are concerned by the new loonie as well for these reasons as well, according to The Huffington Post.
See what Twitter has had to say in response to the new loonie.
While the new #loonie is an important gesture, there's so much more our federal government can do to promote equality for the #LGBTQ+ community. They should #EndTheBloodBan like they promised if they're serious about #equality. #canqueer #cdnpoli https://t.co/oyEkN7Qf0v
— Terence Kernaghan NDP (@kernaghant) April 23, 2019
"Historians and advocates are raising concerns about the message behind the new loonie, saying it mistakenly suggests equality has been achieved and largely as a result of the federal government's actions." #cdnpoli https://t.co/BSwbUZzo1g
— Rachel Aiello (@rachaiello) April 23, 2019
Gay Canadians are still not able to donate blood, but I'll take your gay coins in the meantime. https://t.co/zvAx3yzA9v
— Mike Morrison 🏳️🌈 (@mikesbloggity) April 23, 2019
The Criminal Code reforms only decriminalized private sexual acts between two consenting men over the age of 21. “Everything else remained criminalized,” Gary Kinsman.
— Rick Barnes (@queerthoughts) April 18, 2019
No one likes Canada’s gay loonie https://t.co/XG6QY4HFl3
#loonie New gay rights coin divides LGBT community - and outrages social conservativeshttps://t.co/lrpS9UBWSb pic.twitter.com/rlI67NyYWM
— Bob Burge, EdD 🇨🇦 (@bburge_canada) April 16, 2019
Conflicted about the gay loonie cause like. Gay loonie but also gay men still can’t donate blood so.
— Minty @ HuaLian take me by the hand to the land (@mintiestars) April 23, 2019
Here are some of my thoughts on the gay loonie celebrating 1969, being released tomorrow:
— Tom Hooper (@thomashooper) April 22, 2019
"members from all political parties agreed on one thing: the reform accomplished nothing."#cdnpoli #cdnhist #Anti69 @Anti69ers https://t.co/EBRyNSMyJI
I knew that the new gay loonie was going to misrepresent queer history and the impact of the 1969 Criminal Code changes.
— 🎍🐗🐷 Andrew Woodrow-Butcher 🐗🐷🎍 (@dixitque) April 23, 2019
I didn't know that it was also going to have such an unfortunate design. :-/https://t.co/yPUdKcNkcW
The #gayloonie is a pretty gross Liberal self-congratulation. The "equality" you're celebrating didn't exist in 69, doesn't exist today.
— Devyn on Earth (@DevynonEarth) April 16, 2019
Trudeau knows exactly where he can shove his gay loonies. #canqueer pic.twitter.com/9TutQKNGLR
The new loonie will now be circulated across Canada, effective today on Tuesday, April 23. You can find out more about the coin on the Royal Canadian Mint's website.