BC Conservative candidate Heather Maahs defends blog post about “slave auctions” and blackface in Chilliwack schools

BC Conservative candidate for Chilliwack North, Heather Maahs, is standing by her defence of  “slave auctions” and blackface in Chilliwack schools. 

In a blog post from March 2021, when Maahs was a Chilliwack school trustee, she wrote about “political correctness” in education, spurred by two events in Chilliwack that prompted cultural sensitivity training for staff in the school district.

The events in question involve one student wearing blackface in a school rendition of To Kill A Mockingbird, and a fundraising event called “Slave for a Day.” 

Maahs wrote that without a Black person in the play, “the entire premise for the story and the inherent racism in the story is lost.”

“But, someone saw the picture in a yearbook from several years ago and saw an opportunity to vilify those who would seek to portray a Black person by, well, being Black.”

She also defended the “Slave for a Day” event in her blog post, saying it was “always a fun event for both students and teachers. It is truly such a shame that it has been infested with the accursed title of political correctness.”

When news of the “Slave Days” in Chilliwack schools surfaced, members of BC’s Black community spoke out about racism they experienced living in Chilliwack, and their hesitation to speak up as one of just a handful of Black students.

In one instance, a former Chilliwack student shared how a teacher put a leash on one of the “slaves” and paraded them around the students. 

At the time, the Chilliwack Interim Superintendent issued a statement on racism and discrimination, and pledged to take responsibility for the aforementioned events.

In a statement on X on Sunday, Maahs said that the President of the Chilliwack Teachers Association, who circulated Maahs’ blog post on X the day prior, was simply “vilifying teachers who were using drama for instruction.”

Neither Maahs nor the BC Conservatives responded to questions from PressProgress regarding whether or not they disavow “Slave Days” and blackface in education, or whether they find these kinds of events acceptable. 

BC Conservative Leader Lorne Doerkson has previously said he “will always stand up against hate,” but has repeatedly refused to disavow Maahs as a candidate.

Most recently, Centre BC Leader and former BC Conservative MLA Elenore Sturko claimed Maahs called her “immoral” for being gay.

In last week’s leadership debate Doerkson confirmed that he “would see that as hateful,” but kept Maahs as a candidate.

Just weeks prior, a resurfaced video showed Maahs likening education about the 2SLGBTQ+ community to “grooming.”

In an interview with CTV News on October 4, Doerkson claimed that he does not share Maahs’ views. 

In 2025, Maahs faced backlash from within her own party for inviting a lobby group that opposes same-sex marriage and abortion to an event at the legislature.

To date, Doerkson has removed two other candidates–Victoria-Beacon Hill candidate Joachim Agou, who shared violent tweets about Palestinian protesters, and Jordan McIntosh, who was running in Vancouver-Strathcona, was dropped last week for anti-Semitic remarks.

Doerkson has also stood by his campaign manager Katy Merrifield, who came under blast for multiple Islamophobic posts.