'Bigotry and bullying' drove male candidate from Sourdough Rendezvous contest, organizers say

It wasn't supposed to be a contest by elimination, but the Yukon Sourdough Rendezvous's "Quest for the Crown" event is now down by one contestant. 

Organizers say the contestant was effectively driven out of the fundraising effort because he's a man.

"Intolerance," according to Saskrita Shresthra, executive director of Rendezvous, Whitehorse's annual winter festival. She said the man was hearing a lot of derogatory comments while selling raffle tickets in the community.

For years, the Quest for the Crown was commonly known as the Rendezvous Queen competition, but organizers have been actively promoting it this year as gender-inclusive.

Some people aren't into that, Shresthra says.

"Essentially the underlying message was that [the male contestant] should not be a part of the competition, and this is not what Rendezvous is about or what the Quest for the Crown — or the Queen competition — is about," Shresthra said. 

"That obviously made this candidate not feel like they were enjoying the competition, and what they wanted out of it. So unfortunately for them, it was the right decision to pull out."

The annual competition is a big part of Rendezvous, and the lead-up to the festival. Contestants sell raffle tickets to raise money for the event and vie to become the festival's official ambassador.

Men have never been officially excluded, and Shreshthra said men have entered at least twice in the 1990s. One of them was named "Mr. Congeniality."

Six women entered this year, along with Cameron Penner.

'To be the first King'

Contestants are named for their local sponsors, and they each choose a cause to promote. Penner became "Mr. Bra Boutique," and he was aiming to raise money for a charitable fund for Yukoners diagnosed with breast cancer.

"I chose to be a Quest for the Crown candidate not only to try to be the first King but to also voice an issue that is rarely spoken of and that is men's breast cancer," reads his contestant profile.

"It is close to my heart as I have had two great uncles pass away from breast cancer. Breast cancer can be familial and even though rare in men I felt it very important to share."

On Saturday, Rendezvous organizers announced that Penner had dropped out, though they didn't name him. They blamed "a few members of our community" for "bigotry and bullying."

"These individuals have bullied and harassed our candidates because they hold the belief that men should not be running in the Quest for the Crown contest," organizers said in a news release.

Penner's photo and bio are no longer on the contest's website. He has not responded to CBC's requests for an interview.

Shresthra said other candidates have also experienced harassment or derogatory comments over the years, for different reasons.

Tyson Hickman, president of the Rendezvous Society, says the organization decided to speak out as a way of "creating a line in the sand, saying we won't accept intolerance."

"It's absolutely not in keeping with our values," he said.

He says Rendezvous is now creating policies around tolerance for all event volunteers.

"To know that they're not out there by themselves — that they do have the support of the entire Rendezvous family behind them," he explained.

Two of the remaining contestants in this year's Quest for the Crown were contacted by CBC on Monday, but they referred all questions to Rendezvous organizers.