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LGBT is part of the Equality program. You can find more information about it on its main program page. |
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LGBT
By Communications on May 14, 2012
MEDIA ADVISORY Media contact: Anti-Bullying Bill 13 – CCLA To Make Submissions At Queen’s Park TodayTORONTO – May 14, 2012 – The Canadian Civil Liberties Association’s Noa Mendelsohn Aviv, Director of the Equality Program, will be speaking today at 3:30 p.m. to the Standing Committee on Social Policy during the public hearings for Bill 13, An Act to amend the Education Act with respect to bullying and other matters and Bill 14, An Act to designate Bullying Awareness and Prevention Week in Schools and to provide for bullying prevention curricula, policies and administrative accountability in schools. >> Click here to download a summary of CCLA’s submissions to the Committee The Canadian Civil Liberties Association applauds the spirit and intention of Bill 13 to protect vulnerable students from the kind of bullying and harassment that can transform an important educational and development experience into a terrifying and traumatic one. While CCLA does not challenge the merit of the new legislation, its submissions will focus on the following areas:
The Canadian Civil Liberties Association’s submissions to the Committee will seek to reconcile the pressing and substantial concern of protecting vulnerable students from bullying, with a respect for students’ constitutionally guaranteed rights, such as freedom of expression, association and equality. Noa Mendelsohn Aviv will be available for comment following the presentation. -30-
By Noa Mendelsohn Aviv on July 5, 2011
A boisterous, multi-generational group of CCLA supporters marched in this year’s Toronto Pride Parade to honour the struggles and victories of LGBTQ communities. Having participated in some of these struggles just this past year, CCLA was proud to participate in this event.
Much has been said and written about the parade, so for this post, I will be sharing a few personal observations which I will call: Moments of Pride
By Noa Mendelsohn Aviv on March 18, 2011
The Canadian Civil Liberties Association recently sent a written response to the Halton Catholic District School Board’s proposed new policy on Equity and Inclusive Education. CCLA told the Board that students have the right to form Gay-Straight Alliances and other gay positive clubs in their schools, and to call them by their name. The proposed policy no longer bans GSAs, but is silent on the question of whether or not students can create these groups. This is not good enough, CCLA responded. If the Board intends to allow GSAs in its schools, they need to do so clearly and transparently. Nor is it sufficient according to CCLA to create all-purpose equality groups if these exist alongside an unwritten but effective ban on GSAs.
By Noa Mendelsohn Aviv on January 19, 2011
The CCLA welcomes the decision of the Halton Catholic District School Board (HCDSB) to rescind its policy banning the formation of Gay-Straight Alliances (GSAs) in its schools. The removal of this discriminatory policy sends a positive message to members of that school board, and to its students in particular. In its place, the Board adopted for the interim a template equity and inclusiveness policy that had been created for Catholic school boards. Noa Mendelsohn Aviv, Director of CCLA’s Equality Program was at the meeting in Halton, and submitted in writing a question that had been on several minds: with the change in policy, would students be able to form GSAs or other LGBTQ-positive groups in their schools. The answer of the Board chair was non-committal. The CCLA will continue to monitor the issue to ensure that an unwritten ban does not replace the written ban and that students will be able to exercise their rights to equality, free speech, and freedom of association. CCLA continues to invite students from across Canada to contact us if they are having difficulties creating such groups.
By Noa Mendelsohn Aviv on January 13, 2011
It now remains to be seen what will happen in practice, whether students will be permitted to form LGBT groups – in the Halton Catholic School District and elsewhere. If you are a Canadian high school student looking to create a Gay-Straight Alliance (GSA) or other LGBT group in your school and you are being blocked by your school authorities, you may be interested to know your rights:
In order to support you and protect your rights, we invite you to contact CCLA if these rights are being violated. Noa Mendelsohn Aviv Director, Equality Program Contact: mendelsohnaviv@ccla.org
By Cara Zwibel on January 10, 2011
The Saskatchewan Court of Appeal has handed a victory to advocates of equality in rendering its decision in a reference on proposed amendements to Saskatchewan’s Marriage Act. The proposed amendments would have allowed provincially appointed marriage commissioners to refuse to perform civil marriages where to do so would conflict with their religious beliefs. The amendments were proposed in large part because of objections by some commissioners to same-sex marriage, which became legal in Canada in 2004. The proposed amendments are also broad enough to allow commissioners to refuse to perform marriages on other grounds, including objections to inter-faith and inter-racial unions. A unanimous five-judge panel of the Court of Appeal concluded that the proposed amendments were unconstitutional as they violated the right to equality in a way that could not be justified. The CCLA, represented by special counsel Merrilee Rasmussen, intervened in this case to argue that the proposed amendments were unconstitutional as they violated the Charter’s fundamental right to equality. The CCLA argued that the amendments would risk creating a system of unequal access to basic government services. While the CCLA has always been, and remains, a staunch advocate of freedom of religion, the core function of marriage commissioners is to preside over civil marriages and, in Saskatchewan, marriages are performed either by religious officials or civil commissioners. The CCLA has advocated for the right of religious officials to refuse to perform ceremonies that are contrary to the tenets of their faith, but believes that as marriage commissioners are hired to perform a secular government service, they must serve the public equally. Read the CCLA’s factum here. Read the Saskatchewan Court of Appeal’s decision here.
By Noa Mendelsohn Aviv on January 10, 2011
A reference on proposed amendments to Saskatchewan’s Marriage Act which would have allowed provincially appointed marriage commissioners to refuse to perform civil marriages where to do so would conflict with their religious beliefs. CCLA intervened to argue that the amendments would unjustly violate the right to equality of same-sex couples and thereby risk creating a system of unequal access to basic government services.
By Noa Mendelsohn Aviv on May 12, 2010
Since the legalization of same-sex marriage in 2004, there has been an ongoing controversy in Saskatchewan regarding whether civil marriage commissioners should be required to solemnize same sex marriages. The government of Saskatchewan has asked the Court of Appeal to examine the constitutionality of two proposed bills that would permit civil marriage commissioners to refuse to perform civil marriages which run contrary to their personal religious beliefs. Although the bills make no reference to same-sex marriage, it is clear that the proposed changes arose from ongoing controversy surrounding civil marriage commissioners being asked to perform same-sex marriages. Read more…
By Noa Mendelsohn Aviv on February 24, 2010
CCLA has been granted intervenor status in the May, 2010 reference to the Saskatchewan Court of Appeal. The government of Saskatchewan has asked the Court to examine the constitutionality of two proposed bills that would permit civil marriage commissioners to refuse to perform marriages which run contrary to their personal religious beliefs. Although the bills make no reference to same-sex marriage, it is clear that the proposed changes arose from ongoing controversy surrounding civil marriage commissioners being asked to perform same-sex marriages. While CCLA firmly supports the freedom of religious officials to decline to perform religious marriages based on their beliefs, the function of a civil marriage commissioner is to provide a basic non-religious government service; to do this, they must serve the public equally. CCLA will be intervening before the Court to argue that the proposed amendment would unjustly violate the right to equality of same-sex couples. Although CCLA sympathizes with the attempt to accommodate marriage commissioners’ individual religious beliefs, giving individual public servants the right to discriminate in the provision of basic public services is not an acceptable solution. Allowing a general right to deny a government service based on personal religious beliefs would open the door for civil servants to deny government services based on a multitude of factors. Individuals should not have to fear that a government employee will deny them access to a basic public service due to that employee’s personal convictions.
December 11, 2009
On December 3, 2009 the Court of Queen’s Bench of Alberta released its ruling in the judicial review of Boissoin v. Lund. The decision overturned an Alberta Human Rights Commission Panel’s ruling that Mr. Boissoin had contravened Alberta’s hate speech prohibition. Mr. Boissoin, wrote an opinion piece which was strongly critical of those in the gay rights movement. The letter was published by the Red Deer Advocate – the largest daily newspaper in central Alberta. CCLA, which intervened at both the Commission Panel and before the Queen’s Bench, argued that a broad interpretation of the provincial hate speech laws was an unjustifiable infringement on freedom of expression. Read more… |
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