A staff member of the B.C. Conservative Party was terminated after expressing derogatory remarks on social media about the orange Survivors’ flag, a symbol honoring residential school survivors. Lindsay Shepherd, who previously served as a communications officer for the B.C. Conservative caucus, faced severe backlash following her disparaging comments on the social media platform X.
The incident unfolded when various NDP, Conservative, and Green MLAs raised the Survivors’ flag at the legislature in Victoria in preparation for National Day for Truth and Reconciliation on September 30. Shepherd’s social media post the following day criticized the flag and the accompanying Orange Shirt, dismissing them as perpetuating falsehoods about Canadian history, specifically referencing the discovery of children’s graves in Kamloops.
Although Shepherd promptly deleted her post, a screenshot was circulated by Rohini Arora, NDP MLA for Burnaby East. Arora commended the Conservative caucus for dismissing Shepherd and acknowledged Conservative MLAs who opposed intolerance within their party.
In a public statement, Arora highlighted the prevalence of far-right extremism tolerated within the B.C. Conservatives until brought to light. Shepherd later disclosed on X that B.C. Conservative Leader John Rustad terminated her due to the controversial social media content, expressing disappointment at the outcome, especially given her tenure as an elected board member since 2022.
Grand Chief Stewart Phillip of the Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs had earlier called for Shepherd’s dismissal, denouncing her remarks as shocking and racist. Similarly, former B.C. Green MLA Adam Olsen condemned the comments as vile and emphasized the damaging impact of denying the true history of the province.
The controversy stems from the tragic discovery of potential unmarked graves at the former Kamloops Indian Residential School in May 2021, sparking a nationwide reckoning with the legacy of residential schools and the profound impact on Indigenous communities.