BPC Bulletin: The Proposed Removal of the Religious Argument Defence in Cases of Wilfully Promoting Hatred (2)

Alexis Brunelle-Duceppe, a member of the Bloc Québécois, recently introduced a bill in the House of Commons.

Bill C-373 proposes to eliminate religious arguments expressed in good faith as a defence in court against charges of wilfully promoting hatred or anti-Semitism.

Brunelle-Duceppe’s bill replaces Bill C-367, which François Blanchet, the leader of the Bloc Québécois, introduced in November 2023.

The First Reading of Bill C-373 occurred in the House of Commons on February 5, 2024.

BILL C-373

Private Member's Bill C-373 (44-1) - First Reading - An Act to amend the Criminal Code (promotion of hatred or antisemitism) - Parliament of Canada 

REPORTAGE

In The Catholic Register, Quinton Amundson reports:

Bloc bills are an ‘attack’ on people of faith (catholicregister.org)

In The Globe and Mail, Marie Woolf reports:

MPs, religious groups seek to end religious hate-speech defence in online harms bill - The Globe and Mail

Gwen Roley of AFP Canada reports:

Canadian bill would not criminalize all religious expression | Fact Check (afp.com)

At 338 Canada, Philippe J. Fournier reports:

Léger: Canadians Support Removing Religious Privilege Regarding Hate Speech (338canada.ca)

Cedric Gallant of Nunatsiaq News reports:

Nunavik MP wants to change Criminal Code on hate speech (nunatsiaq.com)

In Le Devoir, Boris Proulx reports:
Le Bloc québécois redépose son «projet de loi Charkaoui» | Le Devoir 

Thanks go to Charles Montpetit who forwarded Boris Proulx’s report.