Hamilton trans mayoral candidate caught using sock puppet while speaking at event

Scarlett Gillespie, Hamilton mayoral candidate
Scarlett Gillespie, Hamilton mayoral candidateInstagram screenshots
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CALGARY — In a recently surfaced viral clip, a trans mayoral candidate for Hamilton, Ontario, uses an odd technique to get their point across — using a sock puppet.

Scarlett Gillespie, a former sex worker turned local activist and Executive Director of the Sex Workers’ Action Program (SWAP), was recently asked at a public event why she wanted to become Hamilton's new mayor, answering using said sock puppet.

"I knew I wanted to run for mayor when Andrea Horwath [current Hamilton mayor] refused to meet with me when I was a victim of a hate crime," reasoned Gillespie, speaking through the sock puppet.

"We were at the safety summit and she had her communications person, Amanda Kinnaird, stand in front of me like I was a feral dog when I actually just wanna be respected," Gillespie stated.

Gillespie, known by the performance named Jelena Vermilion, has also previously received a YWCA Hamilton Women of Distinction award in 2024.

One of the candidates available for Hamiltonians to vote for on October 26, Gillespie wishes to change the fact "City Hall [hasn't] reflected the lived realities of the people on the ground."

Gillespie claims to push for affordable housing along with "advocating for climate justice and transparency in local government."

Reported by VerifRadar, the outlet claims in the clip, Gillespie was actually presenting at a comedy festival, the Uncloseted Comedy 'Pride' Festival, and the sock puppets were a part of a bit.

Posted on Gillespie's Instagram, another clip shows the interviewer and Gillespie at the same event as the viral clip.

"I'm a city housing Hamilton resident, a working-class trans woman living with disabilities," Gillespie said, in the longer excerpt.

In the clip, Gillespie claims to support the development of a "queer community centre" in the city.

A young llama named Runner is back on solid ground after Edmonton firefighters mounted a specialized rescue operation Sunday morning to pull the animal from a three-metre-deep sinkhole in northeast Edmonton.

'LLAMAZING OUTCOME': Edmonton firefighters rescue llama from three-metre sinkhole

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CALGARY — A young llama named Runner is back on solid ground after Edmonton firefighters mounted a specialized rescue operation Sunday morning to pull the animal from a three-metre-deep sinkhole in northeast Edmonton.

According to Edmonton Fire Rescue Services (EFRS), crews were dispatched at approximately 7:15 a.m. to a rural property near Fort Road and 195 Avenue N.E. after reports that ...

Kerry-Lynne Findlay (centre right) celebrates with supporters after winning the BC Conservative Party leadership.

Findlay announces new leadership team for Conservative Party of BC caucus

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VANCOUVER — Kerry-Lynne Findlay, leader of the Conservative Party of BC, has named a new leadership team for the party’s caucus as it prepares to challenge the NDP government when the legislature resumes sitting in the fall.

Parliament Hill

CTF states Ottawa bureaucracy still 33% larger than 2016 despite workforce cuts

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CALGARY — Canadian taxpayers would be saving roughly $7 billion this year if the federal bureaucracy had grown at the same pace as the country's population over the past decade, according to new analysis from the Canadian Taxpayers Federation (CTF).

The findings come as newly released

As the country is set to mark another Canada Day, a new national poll suggests most Canadians remain confident the country will stay together despite growing independence sentiment in Alberta and Quebec ahead of a potentially consequential political Fall.

New poll suggests most Canadians doubt Alberta or Quebec will leave Confederation

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CALGARY — As the country is set to mark another Canada Day, a new national poll suggests most Canadians remain confident the country will stay together despite growing independence sentiment in Alberta and Quebec ahead of a potentially consequential political Fall.

New data released by the Angus Reid Institute found that 64% of Canadians believe Alberta is unlikely to become ind ...

Alberta independence supporter shoved into traffic at Edmonton intersection

WATCH: Alberta independence supporter shoved into traffic at Edmonton intersection

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CALGARY — An Alberta independence supporter was caught on video being shoved toward moving traffic on Sunday evening.

Don Bonnar, an advocate with Alberta Sovereignty Now, a grassroots activist group based in Alberta that advocates for the province’s independence from Canada, was shoved onto the street near the intersection of 109 Street and Jasper Avenue in Edmonton.

 Kristi Noem

Charlie Angus urges Ottawa to review Kristi Noem’s role with Canadian mining company

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OTTAWA — Former NDP MP Charlie Angus is calling on the federal government to review the appointment of former US Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem to the advisory board of a Vancouver mining company, arguing her involvement raises national security concerns for Canada’s critical minerals sector.

Speaking at a news conference on Parliament Hill Monday, Angus said Noem’s role with Nov ...

Toronto's annual Pride Weekend has drawn heavy criticism after multiple videos circulating online showed explicit nudity, controversial slogans, and political messaging at an event that has been promoted in the past as “family-friendly.”

WATCH: Toronto Pride Weekend draws backlash over nudity, political slogans as Carney, Chow take part

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CALGARY — Toronto's annual Pride Weekend has drawn heavy criticism after multiple videos have circulated online showed explicit nudity, controversial slogans, and political messaging at an event that has been promoted in the past as “family-friendly.”

Signs visible during the weekend’s festivities included rainbow Antifa flags, “Queers for Palestine,” and one banner reading, “Send your pa ...

Mitch Sylvestre and other Stay Free Alberta leaders speaking to Alberta independence supporters.

Judge allows Elections Alberta to count Alberta independence petition signatures

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CALGARY — An Alberta judge has granted permission to Elections Alberta to count and verify the petition signatures for Alberta independence.

Announced Monday, Jeffrey Rath, a lawyer for Stay Free Alberta applied for a stay, the ability to temporarily suspend the effects of the previous judge's decision, by Justice Shaina Leonard, who found in May, by allowing the petition, the government ...

Kananaskis Country

Flooding forces state of local emergency in Kananaskis Country as visitors told to stay put

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CALGARY — Heavy rainfall and localized flooding have prompted officials to declare a State of Local Emergency in the Kananaskis Improvement District, with some visitors being told to remain where they are as crews work to restore safe road access throughout Kananaskis Country.

Alberta Forestry and Parks Minister Todd Loewen announced Monday that ongoing flooding has affected roa ...

Education and Childcare Minister Demetrios Nicolaides

Alberta spends $100 million on classroom complexity supports as student needs grow

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CALGARY — Alberta’s government is spending $100 million to hire more teachers, educational assistants and specialized support staff as schools face growing challenges related to classroom complexity and student behaviour.

Education and Childcare Minister Demetrios Nicolaides announced the funding Monday, saying the province is expanding supports across the K-12 system to help sc ...

A BC homeowner took matters into his own hands after catching a group of men dumping an old couch into the woods across from his property, forcing them to retrieve it and dispose of it properly.

WATCH: BC homeowner refuses to let couch dumpers get away with illegal dumping

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CALGARY — A BC homeowner took matters into his own hands after catching a group of men dumping an old couch into the woods across from his property, forcing them to retrieve it and dispose of it properly.

The incident occurred in Mission, BC, where the homeowner, Taylor Mailer, noticed a pickup truck stop near a wooded embankment before seeing an old couch tossed into the bush.

Ins ...

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