Canadian Pastor Faces Jail for Refusing Court-Ordered Apology Over Criticism of Drag Storytime

Derek Reimer is escorted away from an all-ages drag brunch in January 2023. He was later arrested and charged with hate-motivated crimes after disrupting storytime events in February and March 2023. Photo: Brangwyn Jones

CALGARY — A Calgary pastor is facing possible jail time after refusing to sign a court-ordered letter of apology for publicly criticizing a drag-queen story time event for young children at a public library. The case of Pastor Derek Reimer — already sentenced to a year of house arrest — has become a flashpoint in debates over conscience rights and the limits of ideological enforcement in Canada.

As reported by Life Site and Tribune Chrétienne, Reimer was charged after posting a video of a 2023 exchange in which he quietly questioned why the Saddletown Library was hosting a drag story time for minors. Though he left peacefully when asked, the video’s publication triggered what supporters describe as a disproportionate legal response. Now, his refusal to sign an apology he considers “false and contrary to the truth” could send him to prison.

Reimer says his probation officer has sought to “break [his] traditional thoughts about the LGBTQ community,” a demand likened to ideological re-education. The judge overseeing the case, Justice Karen Molle, refused to consider his arguments rooted in religious liberty and freedom of conscience, calling them “irrelevant.”

Drag-queen story time events typically feature male performers in exaggerated makeup and hyper-sexualized costumes reading stories that present gender as fluid and identity as self-determined. Reimer and many parents argue such programs “sow deep confusion in the minds of children” and undermine Christian moral and anthropological teachings.

Supporters say the pastor’s stance is not an act of provocation but a matter of integrity. Reimer has insisted that he cannot apologize for something he believes is fundamentally true.

The Tribune Chrétienne warns that the case signals a troubling trend: 

"Criticizing a sexualized show for children becomes a mistake. Refusing to apologize for this criticism becomes a crime. Defending the truth becomes suspect. In this moral inversion, it is no longer children who are protected, but an ideology that sanctifies confusion while punishing those who dare to oppose it."

Previously, UOJ reported that trans and nonbinary identification has dropped sharply among college students in the U.S.

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