Our “hate/thought crime” law is unconstitutional, rules this guy:
I have determined that Mr. Lemire contravened s. 13 of the Act in only one of the instances alleged by Mr. Warman [The Guy Who Is Suing Us, Too], namely the ‘AIDS Secrets’ article.
However, I have also concluded that s. 13(1) in conjunction with ss. 54(1) and (1.1) are inconsistent with s. 2(b) of the Charter, which guarantees the freedom of thought, belief, opinion and expression. The restriction imposed by these provisions is not a reasonable limit within the meaning of s. 1 of the Charter.
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Background on the Lemire case, from Mark Steyn.
Nobody’s ideal free speech poster boy, Marc Lemire of Warman vs. Lemire used to head the allegedly neo-Nazi Heritage Front. That there are more Nazis in the average Hogan’s Heroes rerun than in all of Canada didn’t deter the HRC from investigating Lemire, without warrants, and employing those other dubious “drive-by Wi-Fi” techniques described above — techniques that not a few observers of Tuesday’s kangaroo court have dubbed, well, “fascist.”
As Jonathan Kay observed in the National Post, “for an organization that is supposed to promote ‘human rights,’ the HRC’s agents seem curiously oblivious to basic aspects of Canadian constitutional law. In one famous on-the-record exchange during the Lemire case, [CHRC lead investigator Dean] Steacy was asked ‘What value do you give freedom of speech when you investigate one of these complaints? — to which he replied ‘Freedom of speech is an American concept, so I don’t give it any value.’”
And The Guy Who Is Suing Us, Too gets chastised, in other parts of this document. (Again!)
We’re winning!
UPDATE:
Mark Steyn is on his way to Rush Limbaugh’s NY studio to guest host, but he’s quickly posted a few words on this “landmark decision”:
This is the beginning of the end for Section 13 and its provincial equivalents, and a major defeat for Canada’s thought police. It’s not just a personal triumph for Marc Lemire, but a critical victory in the campaign by Ezra Levant, Maclean’s, yours truly and others to rid the Canadian state of this hideous affront to justice.
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Congratulations to everyone who has spent untold thousands of dollars and manhours (and in some cases lost jobs and friends) fighting this thankless battle, especially those who’ve been largely ignored/vilified merely for taking the side of free speech no matter who is doing the speaking.
