Brent Chapman
Brent Chapman | |
|---|---|
| Member of the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia for Surrey South | |
| Assumed office October 19, 2024 | |
| Preceded by | Elenore Sturko |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 1959 or 1960 (age 64–65) |
| Political party | BC Conservatives |
Brent Chapman is a Canadian politician who was elected to the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia in the 2024 British Columbia general election. He represents the electoral district of Surrey South as a member of the Conservative Party of British Columbia.
Early life and career
[edit]Chapman was born in 1959 or 1960. He worked as an actor with minor roles in some films and as a small business owner.[1][2]
Political career
[edit]Chapman was selected as the Conservative Party of British Columbia candidate in Surrey South for the 2024 general election. The incumbent MLA, Elenore Sturko, ran in nearby Surrey-Cloverdale as a result of changes made after the 2021 electoral redistribution.[3]
During the election, Chapman was forced to repeatedly apologize for past controversial statements about Muslims, Palestinians, and mass shootings. In the final weeks of the campaign, Chapman had to issue multiple apologies for past political statements denigrating Muslims and Palestinians, and endorsing conspiracy theories after former BC Liberal MLA and current CKNW radio host Jas Johal drew attention to them.[3][4] On October 14, 2024, Chapman posted on social media that he had received legal advice not to continue commenting on his previous social media posts. On October 15, Chapman hid from Global News reporters when they sought to interview him at his campaign office. The same day, BC Conservative leader John Rustad declined to answer whether or not Chapman would be allowed to be a cabinet minister or sit with the party caucus if elected, instead stating BC voters had a choice between Chapman or a continued New Democratic government.[5]
Chapman defeated NDP candidate Haroon Ghaffar in the general election.[3]
Political views
[edit]Gun control
[edit]In February 2017, Chapman made a social media post suggesting that the Quebec City mosque shooting, Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting, Aurora theater shooting, and the Pulse nightclub shooting were faked for political reasons. On October 14, 2024, Chapman tweeted saying that those shootings were real and he had been questioning the chaotic nature of reporting after such shootings.[3][5] The posts led to fresh calls for Chapman to step down as a candidate. Conservative leader Rustad issued a statement that Chapman's posts did not reflect the party's or his views.[4]
Foreign policy
[edit]In November 2015, Chapman shared a video from fake news website called "Jew News" that misrepresented refugees upset with Macedonian police restrictions as refusing Red Cross packages because of the cross and being non-halal. Chapman called for a boycott of Air Canada because of its role in airlifting Syrian refugees to Canada.[2]
In January 2017, after Donald's Trump victory in the 2016 United States presidential election, Chapman, who had posted pro-Trump content on social media, posted a graphic indicating the proper way to commit suicide by gunshot to help "those liberals who said they would kill themselves if Trump were elected".[6]
In mid-September 2024, Chapman said on a podcast that he believed that the United Nations was conspiring to control Canadian municipalities via contracts, citing the work of Freedom Convoy protestor Maggie Hope Braun. Chapman also said that the World Health Organization's proposed International Treaty on Pandemic Prevention, Preparedness and Response would allow it to confiscate personal property, and that the BC Conservatives had 45 to 50 people who were opposed to the treaty.[7]
Health
[edit]In August 2024, one of Chapman's campaign social media accounts reposted a meme that public health harm reduction policies were akin to the fate of the Warsaw Ghetto boy during the Holocaust.[8]
Indigenous issues
[edit]In September 2024, Chapman appeared on a podcast and referred to the mainstream narrative around Canadian Indian residential school gravesites as a "massive fraud" and cult-like. Chapman also said that Canadians should feel proud of their national history.[3] The Union of British Columbia Indian Chiefs condemned the comments as racist and called for Chapman to be removed as a candidate. Chapman issued a statement saying that the clip was being taken out of context and said that he "[had] an immense amount of respect and love for First Nations people and their historic suffering."[9]
Muslims and Palestinians
[edit]In November 2015, Chapman made a Facebook post describing Palestinians as "inbred walking, talking, breathing time bombs." Chapman also made another post describing Muslims as inbred and speculated that "coexistence with Islam" was impossible. The National Council of Canadian Muslims criticized his comments as Islamophobic and the B.C. Muslim Association stated that Chapman should resign as a candidate. On October 9, 2024, Chapman issued a statement describing his past comments as "completely unacceptable" and not reflective of him today.[3][5][10]
Personal life
[edit]Chapman is married to Conservative MP Kerry-Lynne Findlay and has four adult children.[1][2]
References
[edit]- ^ a b Browne, Alex (October 9, 2024). "Meet the candidates: Surrey South". Surrey Now-Leader. Retrieved October 20, 2024.
- ^ a b c LeBrun, Luke (October 10, 2024). "BC Conservative Candidate Called For 'Boycott' of Air Canada to Stop Airlifts Rescuing Syrian Refugees". PressProgress. Retrieved October 20, 2024.
- ^ a b c d e f Jussinoja, Kaija (October 19, 2024). "Controversial candidate Brent Chapman wins Surrey South riding". CTV News. Retrieved October 20, 2024.
- ^ a b "Fresh calls for B.C. Conservative candidate to resign over posts". CBC News. October 15, 2024. Retrieved October 20, 2024.
- ^ a b c Judd, Amy; Ke, Grace (October 15, 2024). "BC Conservative candidate refuses to answer questions at campaign office". Global News. Retrieved October 20, 2024.
- ^ LeBrun, Luke (October 15, 2024). "BC Conservative Candidate Posted Graphic Instructing Critics of Donald Trump on How to 'Kill Themselves'". PressProgress. Retrieved October 20, 2024.
- ^ LeBrun, Luke (October 12, 2024). "BC Conservative Candidate Warned of United Nations 'Conspiracies' to Take Control of Canada". PressProgress. Retrieved October 20, 2024.
- ^ LeBrun, Luke (October 11, 2024). "BC Conservative Candidate's Campaign Shared Graphic Comparing Public Health Policies to Nazi Holocaust". PressProgress. Retrieved October 20, 2024.
- ^ Chan, Cheryl (October 11, 2024). "B.C. election: Conservative candidate under fire again, this time over residential schools". Vancouver Sun. Retrieved October 20, 2024.
- ^ "B.C. Conservative candidate apologizes for 2015 comments about Palestinians". CBC News. October 10, 2024. Retrieved October 20, 2024.