Courtesy: CBC
Canada’s newest judge says never in his “wildest dreams” did he ever imagine that that a gay man could be appointed to a provincial supreme court — and talk openly about it during the swearing-in ceremony
“I am humbled to be apparently Newfoundland and Labrador’s first gay judge,” Alexander (Sandy) MacDonald told a packed St. John’s courtroom on Monday, joking that in the long history of the court, “I’d be flabbergasted if there wasn’t at least one other.” MacDonald’s appointment to the bench comes after three decades practising law.
He thanked his longtime partner Kevin Angel, along with legal mentors Alex Hickman and Doug Hunt, whose suit and robes he wore during Monday’s ceremony. “You cannot know how profoundly important acceptance is to those who feel like an outsider looking in,” he said. ”I can tell you never in my wildest dreams as a young man did I ever think I could be a judge or for that matter, be a managing partner of a large law firm or live openly with my partner … or talk about him in this room.”