Residents of a southern Ontario town are calling for their mayor to step down after comments he made about the LGBTQ community last week. 

In less than a day, more than 4,400 people have signed a petition to have Bob Currie, the longtime mayor of Amaranth, Ontario, removed from office following offensive statements he made during a council meeting. 

During the video meeting last Wednesday, the council addressed a letter from a resident asking why Amaranth was not flying the Pride flag at town hall during Pride Month.

In response, Mayor Currie said: "If everybody was either lesbian or homosexual, this would be the last generation on Earth, because two homosexuals cannot produce offspring." 

"So why would I want to support something when this could be the last generation on Earth? I'm not going to go there."

Over 4K people have signed an online petition calling for the Mayor of Amaranth to be removed from office after making homophobic remarks 🤦‍♀️-📸 Dufferin Board of Trade #Canada #Amaranth #cdnpoli #onpoli #PrideCanada pic.twitter.com/0AKqAqoNQp

— Freshdaily (@freshdaily) June 25, 2020

The statement, which can be heard in a public recording of the meeting, has sparked outrage among residents and local politicians, including Amaranth's deputy mayor Chris Gerrits, who called the incident "disgusting" and "offensive". 

Gerrits also mentioned that he wished he had said something immediately following Currie's statement, rather than allow the meeting to continue as normal. 

Since the fallout, Currie, who is 80 years old and has been Amaranth's mayor for 18 years, has stood by his remarks.

He told The Orangeville Banner: "Those who voted for me, and those who know me, know that I am not a typical ‘politically correct’ politician. I speak my mind and my truth, always."

“Although it is never my intention, sometimes my words offend people. I am sorry that people have been hurt by comments that I have made. That’s my story and I’m sticking to it."

Currie said he has no intention of stepping down as the township's mayor. 

Despite Currie's refusal to fly the Pride flag, Amaranth council will hold a special meeting on Friday at noon to discuss the issue, and in hopes of developing an official flag-raising policy, reported The Banner.