New ‘Hate Speech’ Bill Targets Canadians’ Freedom of Speech and Religion

Left-wing Canadian lawmakers are working to introduce a new bill that would end existing protections for people of faith against prosecution under national “hate speech” laws.

Canada’s Criminal Code, which bans what the government deems “hatred against any identifiable group,” contains a so-called religious exemption that protects Canadians who “in good faith” cite religious texts or beliefs. But the left-wing Liberal and Bloc Québécois parties are currently negotiating new legislation, Bill C-9, with an amendment that would remove this exemption.

The bill’s sponsors say it is necessary to combat hate crimes, but conservatives warn that it could be used to suppress Canadians’ most basic civil rights.

“Bill C-9 was already dangerous as far as freedom of expression and civil liberties are concerned, but if the proposed amendment is adopted, it will amount to an all-out assault on religious freedom as well,” Conservative Member of Parliament Andrew Lawton told The Daily Signal. “The state will be able to jail people who express religious beliefs or quote religious texts the government finds offensive for up to two years.”

Canada’s bill mirrors new laws in the EU and Britain criminalizing what governments deem to be “hate speech,” which has been shown to include insulting government officials in Germany or silent prayer near an abortion clinic in the U.K.

Bill C-9 broadens the definition of “hate speech” under the Criminal Code, prohibits interfering with access to places of worship, bans “hate symbols,” and removes the requirement that Canada’s attorney general approve “the prosecution of hate propaganda” crimes, making it easier to charge Canadians for expressing offensive thoughts.

Legal analysts say that if Bill C-9 passes, it could have a chilling effect on freedom of expression and freedom of faith in America’s northern neighbor.

“Canada already fails to protect freedom of speech, and now some Canadians are proposing to give up on the freedom to exercise one’s religion,” Philip Sechler, senior counsel at the Alliance Defending Freedom, a legal civil rights organization, told The Daily Signal. “Canada’s descent into government censorship underscores why it’s crucial that the United States fully protect free speech.”

In October, Conservative Member of Parliament Leslyn Lewis stated in Canada’s House of Commons that the bill “omits the protection of Christians, despite the fact that more than 100 churches have been burned and vandalized in Canada since 2021.”

By removing the attorney general’s required consent to hate crimes prosecution, it would “risk hate speech being weaponized as a political tool by any party in power by letting the government minister decide who gets charged,” Lewis said. And it would “water down the definition of ‘hatred’ to something so vague and subjective that it would risk encroaching on the very right contained in [Canada’s] Charter of Rights and Freedoms.”

The bill faced some obstacles getting through parliament. The Liberal Party, although the largest in parliament, lacks a majority and needs the support of the Bloc Québécois to pass the bill. As a concession to the Bloc an agreement was reportedly reached to add an additional provision ending the religious exemption for “hate speech” crimes.

There were reports last week that Canada’s Justice Minister Sean Fraser, who brokered the deal with the Bloc Québécois, failed to get buy-in from the Prime Minister’s Office, which could delay the bill further. 

Although the bill’s sponsors claim that it protects churches, critics remain skeptical.

“A Liberal cabinet minister is on record as saying he believes certain verses of the Bible and Torah are ‘hateful’ and should warrant prosecution,” Lawton said. “The government has no right to legislate on how people of faith practice their religion.”

Many civil rights groups and church leaders are likewise criticizing the bill.

“As drafted, Bill C-9 risks criminalizing some forms of protected speech and peaceful protest—two cornerstones of a free and democratic society,” Anaïs Bussières McNicoll, director at the Canadian Civil Liberties Association, said in an issued statement.

New definitions of “hate crimes” in the bill are “far broader than existing prohibitions and could criminalize peaceful protests simply because they are seen as disruptive,” McNicoll said. “The penalty of up to ten years in prison is very severe and could push activists into silence.” 

On Dec. 4, the Council of the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops stated in a letter to Liberal Prime Minister Mark Carney that the religious exemption “has served for many years as an essential safeguard to ensure that Canadians are not criminally prosecuted for their sincere, truth-seeking expression of beliefs.”

The council asked for Carney’s assurance that “good-faith religious expression, teaching, and preaching will not be subject to criminal prosecution under the hate-propaganda provisions.”

The Anglican Church of Canada told The Daily Signal in an official statement that it was “monitoring the discussions currently taking place regarding Bill C-9, and … participating in conversations with church partners about its implications and a potential collective response.”

In what appears to be an increasingly restrictive trend, Canada launched gun confiscations this year and crushed trucker protests against COVID-19 vaccine mandates in 2022. In response to thousands of protesters occupying downtown Ottawa, the government forced banks to freeze participants’ bank accounts and credit cards, threatened online donors with similar treatment, and prosecuted organizers for causing “mischief.”

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