“I know Jewish people in my community. They want this bill. They say it will protect them. Many groups support this bill. The other guy doesn't believe those groups.”
What they said. What they meant.
Plain-language translations from the House of Commons.
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Combatting Hate Act
A bill to make it easier to criminally charge people for 'hate propaganda' offenses, creating new offenses for promoting hatred against 'identifiable groups' or intimidating people accessing religious places. During debate, Conservatives raised concerns about free speech and religious liberty, while Liberals insisted the bill would only protect vulnerable communities. As usual, many members spoke at length about their own ridings and personal anecdotes only tangentially related to the bill.
“You're ruining your own goals.”
“I want you to punish hate crimes. But your new laws go too far and criminalize normal speech. You only listened to some groups. Your actions don't match your words. Your anti-Semitism panel includes someone who defended terrorists. And you gave money to an anti-Semite. Stop grandstanding and enforce existing laws against violence and threats.”
“My friend is saying good things. People should listen to him. We need a strong bill.”
“I proposed a bill to criminalize promoting terrorism. Jewish groups support this. A Liberal MP liked my idea but his party shut it down.”
“I don't like that. You should talk about the bill I want you to talk about.”
“You're ignoring my point and your government blocked a good amendment.”
“We already punish crimes like assault. My bill just adds extra punishment when they believe it's a hate crime. I want everyone to know I'm being tough on hate crimes.”
“The government deleted the old rules on mischief and arson for places of worship. They replaced them with a harder standard so it's tougher to convict. My evidence is Mark Sandler.”
“Hate crimes are bad. I need to look like I'm doing something about it. This bill adds the noose as a hate symbol. I don't like what the other party said about it. The other party is too partisan. We all need to work together to pass this bill and stop hate.”
“You said we shouldn't repeat hurtful remarks. But then you repeated those remarks in your own speech. Aren't you contradicting yourself?”
“I don't want to stay silent. I want to condemn symbols I don't like. A noose should be a hate symbol. Parliament should ban more things.”
“Thanks for supporting my bill. My riding saw an anti-Semitic symbol and a woman in a hijab almost got set on fire. I want this bill as it shows we are combating hate.”
“I want this bill because it shows we are combating hate. No one should feel unsafe. We need to make Canada safe for everyone.”
“I want to divert from the previous question. Does everyone agree politicians should call out hate even from their own supporters?”
“I'm filling time with kind words and saying nothing anyone could pin down later. A Conservative member said something bad. I want to remind everyone the hate bill is important.”
“You want to rush this bill through. It could limit religious speech. That's very divisive. The government should make a new bill that unites Canadians instead of dividing them.”
“I don't want to answer your question about my bill. Instead you should defend something a Conservative MP said yesterday. That will make me look better and avoid your question.”
“I will talk a lot about two police officers who died. I will talk about Rwanda. I will say their deaths make this debate important. Then I will say this bill does too much and takes away important protections. I am not sure it will solve the problem it claims to solve. The government is missing the point. Canadians are concerned about crime and safety. This bill will not stop gang shootings, human trafficking, or violent repeat offenders. Police officer deaths are tragic, but this bill is not the answer.”
“The other person talked about two police who died. I will talk about my father who was police. Police want more laws and penalties. The other party says they are tough on crime but do not really support laws and penalties. The other person used to be police. Now he says the problem is the police. He doesn't really want change.”