Chris Korwin-Kuczynski (born 1953) is a former
Canadian
Canadians () are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their being ''C ...
municipal politician. He served as a councillor in
Toronto
Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...
from 1981 to 2003, and was the city's deputy
mayor
In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a Municipal corporation, municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilitie ...
for a time.
He was born in Toronto, and holds a
Bachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts deg ...
degree in
political science
Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and Power (social and political), power, and the analysis of political activities, political philosophy, political thought, polit ...
from
York University
York University (), also known as YorkU or simply YU), is a public university, public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is Canada's third-largest university, and it has approximately 53,500 students, 7,000 faculty and staff, ...
. He has been a director of the Polish-Canadian Congress, and has served as a special assistant to the federal
Minister of State for Multiculturalism. He ran unsuccessfully for city council in 1980 as Chris Korwin but was successful on his second attempt, in a 1981 by-election.
In 1992, Korwin-Kuczynski successfully urged that the music group
Barenaked Ladies
Barenaked Ladies (BNL) is a Canadian Rock music, rock band which was formed in 1988 in the Toronto suburb of Scarborough, Ontario. The band developed a following in Canada, with their Barenaked Ladies (EP), self-titled 1991 cassette becoming th ...
be banned from performing a concert in
Nathan Phillips Square
Nathan Phillips Square is an city square, urban plaza in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It forms the forecourt to Toronto City Hall, or ''New City Hall'', at the intersection of Queen Street West and Bay Street, and is named after Nathan Phillips ( ...
because he believed their name objectified women. This decision was widely ridiculed, and gave considerable publicity to the then-obscure band.
Korwin-Kuczynski was a member of the council's right-wing, and was a frequent ally of fellow councillor
Tom Jakobek
Tom Jakobek (born ) is a former member of the Toronto City Council. He was first elected to council in 1982 after first serving as a school trustee since 1980. He remained a city councillor until 2000.
Background
Jakobek's father emigrated to Ca ...
.
Kyle Rae
Kyle Rae (born January 23, 1954) is a Canadian consultant and former politician. Rae was a member of Toronto City Council from 1991 to 2010, representing Ward 6 in the old city from 1991 to 1997 and Ward 27 Toronto Centre-Rosedale following the ...
has suggested that Korwin-Kuczynski became isolated on council when Jakobek left in 2000.
In 1993, Korwin-Kuczynski was removed as chair of the Toronto Board of Health after criticizing a strongly worded
AIDS
The HIV, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is a retrovirus that attacks the immune system. Without treatment, it can lead to a spectrum of conditions including acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). It is a Preventive healthcare, pr ...
prevention pamphlet published by the AIDS Committee of Toronto. He had suggested that the committee, which received significant support from Toronto's
gay
''Gay'' is a term that primarily refers to a homosexual person or the trait of being homosexual. The term originally meant 'carefree', 'cheerful', or 'bright and showy'.
While scant usage referring to male homosexuality dates to the late ...
community, be denied city funding if it continued publishing such materials. Referring to his dismissal after the vote, he commented, "
e only real issue I think this all stems from is AIDS, the whole issue surrounding the gay issue".
Kyle Rae
Kyle Rae (born January 23, 1954) is a Canadian consultant and former politician. Rae was a member of Toronto City Council from 1991 to 2010, representing Ward 6 in the old city from 1991 to 1997 and Ward 27 Toronto Centre-Rosedale following the ...
, who is openly
gay
''Gay'' is a term that primarily refers to a homosexual person or the trait of being homosexual. The term originally meant 'carefree', 'cheerful', or 'bright and showy'.
While scant usage referring to male homosexuality dates to the late ...
, has said that Korwin-Kuczynski was anti-gay during the early 1990s but later changed his views. In 2003, Rae was quoted as saying, "He's now generally supportive of these issues, but that didn't come easily."
[
He opposed a 1996 municipal bill that banned smoking in restaurants and bars, and requested that provincial ]Premier
Premier is a title for the head of government in central governments, state governments and local governments of some countries. A second in command to a premier is designated as a deputy premier.
A premier will normally be a head of govern ...
Mike Harris
Michael Deane Harris (born January 23, 1945) is a retired Canadian politician who served as the 22nd premier of Ontario from 1995 to 2002 and leader of the Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario (PC Party) from 1990 to 2002. Taking the PC ...
veto the measure.
Korwin-Kuczynski considered running for the Liberal nomination in Parkdale—High Park in the 1997 federal election, but ultimately declined. He retired from the council in 2003, amid rumours that he would move into consulting work.
He endorsed Dennis Mills
Dennis Joseph Mills (born July 19, 1946) is a Canadian businessman and former politician. He was a Liberal Member of Parliament for the riding of Toronto—Danforth in the east-end of downtown Toronto. From February 2012 until November 2016, ...
's bid for re-election in the 2004 federal election, and a newspaper report from the period suggest that he was considering running as a Liberal candidate in the next federal election.
On September 27, 2006, he filed papers to run in the 2006 Toronto municipal election
The 2006 Toronto municipal election took place on 13 November 2006 to elect a mayor and 44 Toronto City Council, city councillors in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. In addition, school trustees were elected to the Toronto District School Board, Toront ...
in Ward 14. However the next day he withdrew his nomination. This allowed him to retain a fundraising surplus of $21,742 left over from his last campaign. If he hadn't done this the money would have flowed into the city coffers.[https://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/LAC.20061007.CIVIC07/TPStory/TPNational/Ontario/]
Korwin-Kuczynski is a former honorary captain of the Canadian Navy
The Royal Canadian Navy (RCN; , ''MRC'') is the Navy, naval force of Canada. The navy is one of three environmental commands within the Canadian Armed Forces. As of February 2024, the RCN operates 12 s, 12 s, 4 s, 4 s, 8 s, and several auxiliary ...
, and once served as a director on the board of the Royal Canadian Military Institute in Toronto.
References
External links
Former city councillor
{{DEFAULTSORT:Korwin-Kuczynski, Chris
1953 births
Living people
Canadian people of Polish descent
Toronto city councillors
20th-century Canadian municipal councillors
21st-century Canadian municipal councillors