Category Archives: Human Rights

LGBQ Pride, T Shame

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This weekend was Pride in Toronto (and coincidently it is Canada day this Monday). Millions of people from across the country and the word converged on the metropolis to celebrate LGBTQ Pride, a mostly commercial but also a bit political event. I always approach Pride as a festival more than anything else. I can be an advocate nearly all other days; this one is for celebration and fun time. Nevertheless, this year felt very different as I did not feel like celebrating much. While many were celebrating the death of DOMA and Prop 8,[1] a much more Canadian issue was mainly absent from Pride (outside of the trans circles/specific events of course): the inclusion of gender identity as a protected ground in the Canadian Human Rights Act.[2]

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Sur l’État, la religion et les cours

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« Une société vraiment libre peut accepter une grande diversité de croyances, de goûts, de visées, de coutumes et de normes de conduite. »[1] le juge Dickson.

Qu’arrive-t-il lorsque l’État décide de promouvoir cette diversité à l’école malgré l’opposition de certains parents? La Cour suprême a partiellement répondu à cette question dans son arrêt SL c Commission scolaire des Chênes.[2] Pour ceux et celles qui ne sont pas familiers avec cette affaire, il s’agit d’une famille catholique du Québec qui a tenté de soustraire ses enfants du cours d’éthique et cultures religieuses rendu obligatoire en 2008 par le Ministère de l’éducation.[3] Ce cours a pour but de laïciser le système d’éducation en remplaçant les anciens cours sur la religion catholique, sur la religion protestante et sur la morale par un seul cours portant sur les religions du monde et sur l’éthique. Le cours a donc pour but de mettre fin à un enseignement religieux chrétien ne correspondant plus à notre société pluriconfessionnelle et laïque.

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Some Insights on Insite

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On 30 September 2011 the Supreme Court of Canada released the Insite decision.[1] This case began when the Government of Canada made it clear that it wouldn’t renew Insite’s – a supervised drug injection clinic in the Down Town Eastside of Vancouver – exemption from the application of the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act (the CDSA). Insite and its many supporters decided to challenge the constitutionality of the CDSA applicability to Insite and of the refusal of the Minister of Health to grant the exemption. A few weeks ago, the judicial battle ended with a victory for society, and for Insite and its patients.

I am happy for the people who are involved with Insite; it is a great victory for them and probably a great relief as they won’t have this Sword of Damocles hanging over their heads anymore. It was, however, a predictable victory. The Supreme Court of British Columbia[2] and the British Columbia Court of Appeal[3] had already found that the applicability of the CDSA to Insite violated section 7 of the Charter[4] (right to liberty, life and personal security of the person).[5] The facts of this case were overwhelmingly in favour of Insite. The project had the support of the community, the business close to Down Town East Side, the public health authorities, the City ofVancouver and theProvince ofBritish Columbia. The federal government, to no surprise, only had demagogical arguments. It was thus a predictable victory as I couldn’t conceive how the Supreme Court, in anyway shape or form, could agree with the federal government. The CDSA was not found inapplicable but the refusal of the Minister of Health was found to violate section 7 and the Court ordered the government to exempt Insite and to give an exemption to any safe injection site that would meet certain criteria.

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When Death is Racist

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I have been traveling quite a bit lately, for fun and for work. Although I enjoyed it – being the travel addict that I am – it gave me little time to finish my post on the recent Supreme Court decision of Insite. I expect it will be done by the end of this week. In the meantime, I have an interesting reading suggestion for you. It’s a short article written by Sonya Nigam, executive director of the Human Rights Research and Education Centre at the University of Ottawa published online by Canadian Lawyer. The article follows the execution of Troy Davis, a black man, in Georgia. It’s a pretty gruesome case and shows the barbarity, in my opinion, of the American legal system and its use of the death penalty. What’s really interesting, however, is the level of racism of that system as outlined by the article. Also worth nothing is the little parallel at the end with Bill C-10. Not so light reading, but insightful nevertheless.

Here’s the article, enjoy:

http://www.canadianlawyermag.com/3898/reflections-in-the-wake-of-troy-davis-execution.html