Toronto City councillors are expected to release a report this month following consultations around a proposed bylaw that, if passed, would ban protests occurring close to “vulnerable” institutions including schools and religious institutions.Lawyers and human rights advocates say the bylaw targets pro-Palestine speech and demonstrations.
On Thursday, April 17, hundreds of workers and activists, including members of the Coalition for Charter Rights and Freedoms, gathered in front of City Hall to protest the proposed City of Toronto’s protest bubbles bylaw. The coalition includes members of Migrant Workers Alliance for Change, Jews Say No to Genocide, and CUPE Locals 3903 and 2484. City councillors Chris Moise, Gord Perks and Alejandra Bravo were also present at the demonstration.
The city’s bylaw is modelled on a controversial City of Vaughn bylaw passed in June 2024. That bylaw imposes a 100-metre distance between demonstrations and “vulnerable” institutions. This includes schools, faith-based institutions and cultural centres. In Vaughn, the maximum fine for violating the “Protecting Vulnerable Social Infrastructure By-law” is $100,000.
Activists, lawyers and members of unions and civil rights organizations have denounced the proposed City of Toronto bylaw for effectively banning protests anywhere in downtown Toronto. They say the bylaw would threaten fundamental freedoms upheld and protected by the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, specifically, Section 2C, which enshrines the right to peaceful assembly. (more...)
Proposed Toronto Bylaw Threatens Right to Protest
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