The Right to Protest and Gather - Canada

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Your Right to Gather and Protest

While the Charter protects many of the rights that are crucial to effective protest, laws limit this right in very real ways.

Protesters have been arrested for breaching the peace and unlawful assembly.
Provincial legislation may restrict blockades on public roadways and assemblies on certain pieces of public property.
Municipal by-laws often limit how, when, and where, protests can be held.

People in a democratic society have the right to protest.

If we allow too many restrictions on the fundamental right to protest, we silence the voices of many in our society, particularly those who may have limited other means for making their views known.

It’s worth remembering that protests are intended to cause disruption and this is protected activity in a democracy. Strong protections for the right to protest are essential to meaningful and informed political debate and discussion.

A democratic society welcomes debate and disagreement on the key issues of the day, and protest is a big part of this process.

Protests can be messy and disruptive, but they are also crucial to our well-being as a society.

We only have the right to vote every few years, but protests provide opportunities to express our views and grievances at any time.

Protesting? Know your Rights

CCLA has published a Know Your Rights Guide to help you understand your rights, and be better prepared.

DOWNLOAD THE GUIDE

Our 2019 Supreme Court Win

Police should not be able to see a peaceful protester, throw them to the ground, hurt them, and then arrest them, even if it is to prevent violence by others. We saw police abuse this authority in Toronto during the 2010 G20 by arresting over a thousand peaceful protesters.

At a protest, Randy Fleming was thrown to the ground and forcefully detained by multiple police officers, even though he had done nothing wrong. Multiple officers physically brought him down and one even used his body weight to restrain him by putting his knee on Randy’s face. The police said they did this in order to prevent violence by others. In our quest for justice, we joined Randy Fleming all the way up to the Supreme Court in the first ruling in Canadian history to address police powers in such circumstances.

In October of 2019. Randy finally got justice.

It was the first Supreme Court ruling in Canadian history to address police powers in such circumstances, and CCLA was in court fighting for the freedom to protest peacefully without being hurt, thrown to the ground, and arrested.

The right to protest is crucial to a free democracy and important to creating a more equitable society.

Our Recent Cases and Reports

View our latest work and activity.

Protest Rights & the G20

Canadians deserve to know why the security failed to fulfill its role to protect the right to protest, which brings together a number of basic civil liberties including freedom of expression, freedom of association and freedom of peaceful assembly.

VIEW CASE

Protest Rights & the G20

The Ontario legislature passed a law that forces gas station owners to put up stickers with the government party line on pollution pricing or the carbon tax. The government should not force anyone to share their message. If the station owners choose to not put up the stickers, they can be handed a new fine every day. That’s called “compelled political speech.” That’s unconstitutional.