A campaign to cancel an anti-war speaking tour represents a troubling return to a more repressive Canadian era. People who care about democracy and free speech should be appalled.
On June 19 Dimitri Lascaris began on “Making Peace With Russia, One Handshake At A Time.” The ten-city tour organized by the Canada-wide Peace and Justice Network follows the former Green party leadership candidate’s visit to Russia.
Concerned about previous shutdown efforts by the government-backed Ukrainian Canadian Congress (UCC), organizers in most cities have made the venue secret until the last-minute. To mitigate against disruptions, they also required individuals to purchase tickets in advance.
The first stop in London faced an effort to have it canceled but still took place after the owner of the venue refused to listen to multiple hostile emails. The second event in Hamilton was met with an aggressive protest requiring significant security. The Toronto event scheduled for the next evening was canceled at the last minute after the Ontario Public Service Employees Union revoked the room booking claiming they received threatening emails. The next stop in Winnipeg was held at a third location after two different venues canceled on short notice. In Victoria the strategy to disrupt the upcoming talk appears to be to book all the eventbrite tickets without planning to use them. For small, all volunteer groups organizing backup venues and plans is a major burden. (more...)
Canada’s odious history of blocking anti-war voice lives again
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