Although CRIPE’s mandate is not that of a lobbyist, members have been open to take on some initiatives which highlight the violation of our right to equality of treatment and to freedom of religion. Hence, our predecessor organization, Friends of Public Education in Ontario, Inc. raised enough money to publish the book, Not Carved In Stone in 1992, and to hire a lawyer to make a submission to the United Nations in both 1997 and 2005. One member sponsored the School Referendum which was conducted across the province. Four members have tackled the separate high schools for exemptions from religious programs and courses. One ran to be a trustee of a Roman Catholic school board. Others have calculated the extra annual costs to taxpayers to support the funding of the separate schools. And many members write letters to the newspapers’ Letters to the Editor section and/or the MPPs. All actions are encouraged because it is the strength of numbers that eventually count.. And those dedicated to justice in this province have happily initiated projects of their own, or support those of head office with donations. Even the publishing and mailing of newsletters costs money. (Only about a third of our membership have e-mail). Check out the many headings under Actions Taken for a record of what we have done.
