Kasari Govender: Decision helps victims of online hate speech get justice
The British Columbia Human Rights Tribunal has decided to hear a case of online hate speech brought by a former Chilliwack school administrator.
The case involves the British Columbia Teachers’ Federation (BCTF), on behalf of the Chilliwack Teachers’ Association, and Barry Neufeld. The case was brought against Neufeld after he made online comments in 2017 about SOGI 123, a guide on sexual orientation and gender identity used in British Columbia schools.
“At the risk of being labelled a bigoted homophobe, I must say that I support traditional family values and agree with the Pediatric Association that allowing young children the choice to change their gender is nothing short of child abuse,” he wrote in a public post on Facebook. “But now British Columbia’s Ministry of Education has embraced the LGBTQ lobby and is forcing this biologically absurd theory on children in our schools.”
On July 7 of this year, the arguments of Neufeld and the BCTF were presented to the court. Neufeld argued that the matter should not be handled at the provincial level.
British Columbia’s Human Rights Commissioner Kasari Govender is intervening in the case and announced on August 8 that the court had decided to hear the case.
In her intervention, Govender argued that the tribunal had jurisdiction over hate speech and discriminatory statements online. In her announcement, she said she was satisfied with the tribunal’s decision and would speak on the matter again in the autumn when the tribunal hears the case.
“The Commissioner is pleased that the Court agrees with her argument that ‘there is no principled basis’ for exempting Internet publications from the protection of British Columbia’s Human Rights Code,” the statement said.
“This is a positive decision for people across British Columbia and Canada,” Govender said. “The Tribunal’s decision means that discriminatory or hateful speech is not protected under provincial human rights laws simply because it was posted online. The BC Human Rights Code will continue to provide protection for people in this modern context.”
At issue was Section 7 of the BC Human Rights Code, which targets publications that commit discrimination and hatred against protected groups. The court found that Section 7 “actually provides an avenue for redress for people whose rights have been violated in online publications, and that this is within the province’s constitutional jurisdiction,” Govender added. “The court made it clear that while jurisdiction over telecommunications systems lies at the federal level, this does not prevent provinces from applying provincial laws to online conduct that falls within their jurisdiction.”
She said the decision will help people who are victims of online hate speech get justice.
“The internet is an integral part of our daily lives and a medium where harmful content can spread quickly and with serious consequences,” she said. “I am glad that complainants can rely on British Columbia’s Human Rights Act when discriminatory content is posted online.”
In her role as intervener and commissioner, Govender will provide the court with guidance on the legal review of hate speech to help distinguish between speech that discriminates against gender diverse people and speech that, while offensive, does not violate British Columbia’s Human Rights Code.
The actual allegations of hate speech have not yet been examined, although Neufeld stated at the July 7 hearing that he believed this was a “foregone conclusion.”
The hearing will take place this fall.
READ MORE: Human Rights Court examines jurisdiction in Chilliwack online hate speech case
