Not Reserving Judgment

Not Reserving Judgment


Episode 14: Why haven't we seen more arrests for hate speech in Canada?

November 15, 2023

On Episode 14 of Not Reserving Judgment, we talk about why we haven't seen more hate speech charges following the explosion of vitriol at the past month's anti-Israel rallies; we discuss whether caste-based discrimination should be banned; we tell you about the curious case of a woman who says she was fired for calling her underlings "my humans"; we talk about Ontario MPP Sarah Jama's latest outrageous statement; and we share some breaking news about a case we're working on.


Stories and cases discussed in this week's episode:


  • 'Questions raised after arrest of Calgary protester on hate-motivated disturbance charge (CBC)
  • One man charged after weekend protest (Calgary Police)
  •  Craquelures dans le postnationalisme de Justin! (La Presse)
  • François Legault accuse le prédicateur Adil Charkaoui d’inciter à la haine (La Presse)
  • Saskatchewan (Human Rights Commission) v. Whatcott (SCC)
  • Calgary Mayor Jyoti Gondek statement on hate at rallies (X.com)
  • Berlin criminalizes slogan 'From the River to the Sea, Palestine will be free' (i24 News)
  • Independent Ontario MPP Sara Jama spreading misinformation (X.com)
  • Are the pro-Hamas protests in violation of Canada’s hate speech and terrorism laws? Joe Adam George for Inside Policy (Macdonald-Laurier Institute)
  • Union claims City of Saskatoon employee was wrongfully fired for gender-neutral language (Saskatoon Star-Phoenix)


Not Reserving Judgment is a podcast about Canadian constitutional law hosted by Josh Dehaas, Joanna Baron, and Christine Van Geyn.


The show is brought to you by the Canadian Constitution Foundation, a non-partisan legal charity dedicated to defending rights and freedoms. To support our work, visit theccf.ca/donate.