We've been covering the ongoing Canadian residential school dispute for a while now, specifically the ongoing hoax that a massive grave of children is buried on several of the properties:
Well, Canadian thought leaders have just about had it with people (checks notes) voicing suspicion over public hysteria!
NDP MP Leah Gazan introduced a private member's bill in the House of Commons ahead of the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation that seeks to criminalize residential school denialism. ...
The bill proposes that anyone who, other than in private, promotes hatred against Indigenous Peoples by 'condoning, denying, downplaying or justifying the Indian residential school system in Canada or by misrepresenting facts related to it' could be subject to a maximum of two years in jail.
Ahhh. You see that word in there, folks? "Downplaying." That's doing the heavy lifting here.
"Condoning," "denying," those terms are a little more concrete. It's still bonkers to criminalize them, but most people aren't going to "condone" or "deny" that some abuses happened at these schools.
But "downplaying" it ... that's much more subtle! That could mean anything — suggesting that it wasn't quite as bad as critics claim, for instance, or suggesting — and here I am just spitballing — that a mass grave of Indian children doesn't actually exist.
You can see how you could get yourself quickly thrown into jail up there over voicing a simple opinion. That's the point!
The bill's advocates, of course, would like you to know that they're totally concerned about this and they're not going to let it get out of hand:
The bill does set out some exceptions, including if the statements were true, if they were relevant to public interest, if they were intended to point out hatred toward Indigenous Peoples or if it is a religious opinion.
Ahh, thank goodness! So you can voice your criticisms about the whole controversy and so long as your remarks are "relevant to the public interest," you're good to go.
But if they're not ...
Even for Canada this is pretty Canada.
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