OTTAWA 鈥� Sen. Lynn Beyak has been suspended without pay from the Senate for the remainder of this parliamentary session after refusing to remove racist letters about Indigenous people from her website.

Senators voted to remove her on Thursday, following recommendations from the Senate Ethics and Conflict of Interest for Senators Committee.

鈥淵our committee finds Senator Beyak鈥檚 conduct wanting in several ways, including: her failure to recognize 鈥� or decision not to acknowledge 鈥� that the content of the letters in question is racist,鈥� said the committee report released on April 30.

The suspension only applies to the remaining six weeks of the current session, meaning she will be able to return to her seat in the upper chamber when a new parliamentary session begins after the Oct. 21 federal election.

Though, there is potential for future measures should she not come into compliance on the host of measures that her Senate peers are recommending.

In addition to Beyak鈥檚 suspension, the committee recommended that:

  • Unless she does it herself, Senate administration remove the five letters found to have racist content;
  • Beyak attend educational programs about racism towards Indigenous people and the history of Crown-Indigenous relations, at her own expense;
  • The Clerk of the Senate brief her on her role and responsibilities as a senator and the limitations of that, at her own expense; and
  • That she apologize to the Senate in writing and that apology be made public on the main Senate web page.
  • That she not be reimbursed for any living or travel expenses; and that she not be able to claim any other services, telecommunications costs or benefits during her suspension.

鈥淵our committee is of the view that suspension is particularly appropriate where the breach of the Code is such that the Senator whose conduct is at issue would benefit from time away from the Senate to gain further perspective,鈥� the committee report stated. It also references their 鈥減rofound disappointment鈥� with Beyak鈥檚 conduct, 鈥渨hich reflects negatively on her, all senators, and the Senate as a whole.鈥�

Beyak spoke in the Senate prior to the vote, and implored her colleagues to reject the recommendations.

Her letters have been a point of controversy for over a year, after facing considerable backlash from Indigenous groups and the broader Canadian public for declaring that 鈥渟ome good鈥� came from Canada鈥檚 residential schools. She has also suggested that First Nations should 鈥渢rade in鈥� their status cards for Canadian citizenship. Indigenous people who were born in Canada are Canadian citizens.

The notes deemed to be particularly problematic are among around 100 letters Beyak posted in defence of her position on Indigenous history and rights. It appears that she has resumed her practice of posting similar material. Within the last few weeks Beyak had added two new letters to her web page; one titled 鈥淲hiteout鈥� from a Winnipeg man who raises questions about 鈥渘ame changing based on hurt feelings.鈥� The other, about Orange Shirt Day鈥攆ocused on the experience of students at residential schools鈥攖hanks her for 鈥渄rawing attention to the other side of the story of residential schools.鈥�

She was removed from the Conservative caucus for refusing to remove the comments from her Senate-funded web page.