Canadian Minister Denies Gay Deletions

Canadian immigration minister Jason Kenney denied Wednesday that he played any role in deleting references to gay rights from a new citizenship study guide.

Previous reports allege that Kenney, a Tory, ordered the deletion of two paragraphs from the 63-page study guide pertaining to the decriminalization of homosexuality, nationwide marriage equality, and nondiscrimination against gay people.

Kenney denies the accusations, according to CBC News.

"Asked Wednesday why he blocked any information about same-sex marriage and charter rights protecting sexual orientation, Jason Kenney said: 'I did not do such a thing. No, no, you are wrong.'"

According to reports referenced by CBC News, a memo to Kenney from bureaucrats in the immigration agency last June shows that the sections pertaining to gay rights were removed at his request. Another memo shows that he rejected a last-minute request to re-insert the sections in August.

A spokesman for Kenney said that his signature is not on any of the documents, which suggests that someone else is his office made the decision.