Church Teaching Civil Rights & Liberties
Every member of society is imbued with a number of rights. With them come responsibilities.
In Catholic terms, a “right” has been defined as a subjective moral power, residing in the person posing it, “to do, hold, or extract something,” which functions through appeal to another’s will through the other’s intellect. It is to be distinguished from might, i.e. the physical force or power to take something away from another. – Fr John Hardon, SJ, Modern Catholic Dictionary
Man’s history of sin begins when he no longer acknowledges the Lord as his Creator and himself wishes to be the one who determines, with complete independence, what is good and what is evil. “You will be like God, knowing good and evil” (Gen 3:5): this was the first temptation, and it is echoed in all the other temptations to which man is more easily inclined to yield as a result of the original Fall. – Pope Saint John Paul II, Veritatis splendor
The demands of the common good… are strictly connected to respect for and the integral promotion of the person and his fundamental rights. These demands concern above all the commitment to peace, the organization of the State’s powers, a sound juridical system, the protection of the environment, and the provision of essential services to all, some of which are at the same time human rights: food, housing, work, education and access to culture, transportation, basic health care, the freedom of communication and expression, and the protection of religious freedom. -164-166, Compendium of the Social Doctrine of the Church
Racism & Discrimination
The unity of the human family is not yet becoming a reality. This is due to obstacles originating in materialistic and nationalistic ideologies that contradict the values of the person integrally considered in all his various dimensions, material and spiritual, individual and community. In particular, any theory or form whatsoever of racism and racial discrimination is morally unacceptable. -433, Compendium of the Social Doctrine of the Church
Conscience & Religion
The Catholic Church emphasizes, among other rights, the right to religious freedom. Emphasis is given to the paramount value of the right to religious freedom: “all men are to be immune from coercion on the part of individuals or of social groups and of any human power, in such wise that no one is to be forced to act in a manner contrary to his own beliefs, whether privately or publicly, whether alone or in association with others, within due limits”. The respect of this right is an indicative sign of “man’s authentic progress in any regime, in any society, system or milieu.” -320, 321 Compendium of the Social Doctrine of the Church
With euthanasia and medically-assisted death and abortion legalized, it is critical that healthcare providers whose deepest moral convictions tell them that such procedures are wrong, not be forced to participate. Catholic teaching says workers should be safeguarded from suffering any affront to conscience or personal dignity.
It is a grave duty of conscience to avoid cooperating, even formally, with practices contrary to the Law of God.
Freedom of Speech: truth, the press & the media
Information is among the principal instruments of democratic participation. Participation without an understanding of the situation of the political community, the facts and the proposed solutions to problems is unthinkable.
It is necessary to guarantee a real pluralism in the dissemination of information, ensuring that there are many forms and instruments of information and communications. Special attention must be given to the phenomenon of the news media being controlled by just a few people or groups. This has dangerous effects for the entire democratic system… The media must be used to build up and sustain the human community in its different sectors: economic, political, cultural, educational and religious. Society has a right to information based on truth, freedom, justice and solidarity. The essential question is whether the current information system is contributing to the betterment of the human person; that is, does it make people more spiritually mature, more aware of the dignity of their humanity, more responsible or more open to others, in particular to the neediest and the weakest.
A further aspect of great importance is that new technologies must respect legitimate cultural differences. In the world of the media the intrinsic difficulties of communications are often exacerbated by ideology, the desire for profit and political control, rivalry and conflicts between groups, and other social evils. Moral values and principles apply also to the media…. 414-416, Compendium of the Social Doctrine of the Church
Gender Equity
The feminine genius is needed in all expressions in the life of society. The first indispensable step in this direction is the concrete possibility of access to professional formation. The persistence of many forms of discrimination offensive to the dignity and vocation of women is due to a long series of conditioning that penalizes women, who have seen themselves relegated to the margins of society and even reduced to servitude… An urgent need to recognize effectively the rights of women in the workplace is seen especially under the aspects of pay, insurance and social security. –295, Compendium of the Social Doctrine of the Church
Property
Private property and other forms of private ownership of goods “assure a person a highly necessary sphere for the exercise of his personal and family autonomy and ought to be considered as an extension of human freedom … stimulating exercise of responsibility, it constitutes one of the conditions for civil liberty.” -171, Compendium of the Social Doctrine of the Church
The Church’s social doctrine requires that ownership of goods be equally accessible to all, so that all may become, at least in some measure, owners. The world exists for everyone, because all of us were born with the same dignity. Diff1erences of colour, religion, talent, place of birth or residence, and so many others, cannot be used to justify the privileges of some over the rights of all. As a community, we have an obligation to ensure that every person lives with dignity and has sufficient opportunities for his or her integral development. -176, Compendium of the Social Doctrine of the Church
Not to share our wealth with the poor is to rob them and take away their livelihood. The riches we possess are not our own, but theirs as well… Other rights having to do with the goods necessary for the integral fulfilment of persons, including that of private property or any other type of property, should in no way hinder [this right], but should actively facilitate its implementation. Fratelli tutti, -188-120
Human Rights
The Church also recognizes a number of Human Rights, including:
– the right to life, an integral part of which is the right of the child to develop in the mother’s womb from the moment of conception;
– the right to live in a united family and in a moral environment conducive to the growth of the child’s personality;
– the right to develop one’s intelligence and freedom in seeking and knowing the truth;
– the right to share in the work which makes wise use of the earth’s material resources, and to derive from that work the means to support oneself and one’s dependents; and
– the right freely to establish a family, to have and to rear children through the responsible exercise of one’s sexuality.
The Church also emphases rights to adequate housing; clean water, and secure, nutritious food; education and access to culture, transportation, basic health care.
– 151-166 Compendium of the Social Doctrine of the Church
Individual Responsibilities
“In human society to one man’s right there corresponds a duty in all other persons: the duty, namely, of acknowledging and respecting the right in question.” “Those, therefore, who claim their own rights, yet altogether forget or neglect to carry out their respective duties, are people who build with one hand and destroy with the other. -156 Compendium of the Social Doctrine of the Church
Subsidiarity
Subsidiarity is the principle that each element of society should serve its proper purpose, and support others in serving theirs, without encroaching on the other’s responsibilities. One consequence of this principle is that each individual, and smaller groups of people, should be allowed to make for themselves all the decisions that can responsibly be left to them, rather than to larger groups or greater authorities. A premise of the principle is that we are each responsible for our own salvation, within the limits of the gifts and the challenges with which God has endowed us. This is one of the fundamental social teachings of the Church, since it helps to ensure that each individual is empowered to find his or her own way to God.
Families, Individuals, and Civil Society
It is impossible to promote the dignity of the person without showing concern for the family, groups, associations, local territorial realities; in short, for that aggregate of economic, social, cultural, sports-oriented, recreational, professional and political expressions to which people spontaneously give life and which make it possible for them to achieve effective social growth. This is the realm of civil society… This network of relationships strengthens the social fabric and constitutes the basis of a true community of persons, making possible the recognition of higher forms of social activity.
The political community is established to be of service to civil society, from which it originates… This vision is challenged by political ideologies of an individualistic nature and those of a totalitarian character, which tend to absorb civil society into the sphere of the State. The political community and civil society are not equal in the hierarchy of ends. The political community is essentially at the service of civil society and, in the final analysis, the persons and groups of which civil society is composed.
The State must provide an adequate legal framework for social subjects to engage freely in their different activities and it must be ready to intervene, when necessary and with respect for the principle of subsidiarity, so that the interplay between free associations and democratic life may be directed to the common good. -185, 417, 418 Compendium of the Social Doctrine of the Church
Subsidiary governments: provinces, municipalities, territories, & Aboriginal societies
The principle of subsidiarity is opposed to various forms of centralization, bureaucratization, and welfare assistance, and to the unjustified and excessive presence of the State in public mechanisms… Just as it is gravely wrong to take from individuals what they can accomplish by their own initiative and industry and give it to the community, so also it is an injustice and at the same time a grave evil and disturbance of right order to assign to a greater and higher association what lesser and subordinate organizations can do. -185, Compendium of the Social Doctrine of the Church
Bloc Quebecois Civil Rights & Liberties
English Minority and Indigenous Rights
The Bloc’s most recently-published Programme states that:
– it believes that the French language is at the heart of Quebec’s national identity, and it has , is and always will be Quebec’s common language.
– it believes that the historic English minority must be protected in its historic institutions, but that this must always be done with view to preserving and strengthening the national character of the Quebec state, which must take precedence.
– it believes that each Aboriginal language is national to them, and that they must be able to speak their own language, that their national identity be preserved.
Gender Equity & Civil Rights
The Bloc’s most recently-published Programme states that:
– are egalitarians and feminists.
– believe that all human beings are equal, and that it is the responsibility of the State to ensure that all human rights are respected, and to make equality effective for all.
– promote pay equity without compromise.
– fight violence women and girls, in all its forms, in all environments – military, sports, civil, domestic – and campaign for tighter access to firearms and a ban on assault and handguns.
– support and promote parity in civic institutions, decision-making bodies and among elected representatives.
– believe that a woman’s body belongs to her and her alone, just as everyone’s body belongs to everyone, and that this right must be guaranteed.
– defend the fundamental right to contraception and abortion.
– fight misogyny and support women in their fight for equality.
– fight all forms of violence against women, including feminicide and rape culture.
– fight against all forms of discrimination, particularly with regard to diversity and sexual orientation, and support the LGBTQ+ community in its struggles. Believe that sexual orientation should never be a barrier to anyone’s life choices.
– are opposed to all forms of discrimination, and call for a review of the grant criteria for the University Research Chairs Program, to ensure that skills and merit are given priority.
Freedom of Conscience and Religion
The Bloc’s most recently-published Programme states that:
– believe that religious convictions should in no way interfere with relations between the State and the citizen.
– believe that the State must not recognize, pay or subsidize any religion, that only a secular state promotes the progressive and egalitarian values of Quebecers, and that only secularism protects these values against religious dogma and fundamentalism.
– can’t repeat it often enough: the best way to protect religious freedom is for the state to have none at all. The responsibility of the State is not to promote religion, but to enable people to live freely according to their beliefs or non-beliefs.
– oppose prayer in the House of Commons, oaths on the Bible, oaths to a monarch who is also a religious leader, and all religious manifestations in the management of state affairs.
Freedom of Speech and Expression
The Bloc’s most recently-published Programme states that:
– are stubborn and tough promoters and defenders of freedom of expression, without nuance, without condition and without exception; in the arts, in research, in science and education, in the streets and in the media. Everywhere, all the time.
– oppose censorship, the culture of annulment, intimidation, humiliation and popular tribunals that replace the justice system, particularly on social networks and under the cloak of anonymity. Are advocates of open conversation and the rule of law.
– claim the right to offend, to displease, to shock, to think differently, and recognize everyone’s right to offend them, to displease them, to shock them and to think differently, without ever tolerating hate speech or incitement to hatred.
– claim the right to be wrong, to reconsider their positions, to change their minds.
– fight for press freedom and the independence of journalists at all times; and when the public interest is at stake, support the public’s right to complete, impartial and timely information from both government agencies and private companies.
– believe that hatred, incitement to hatred, ostracization and shunning are not the embodiment of freedom of expression and need not be defended in any way.
Press & Journalism
The Bloc’s most recently-published Programme states that:
– as a matter of accountability, it believes in the freedom of the press, the independence of journalists, the protection of sources and freedom of opinion and expression.
Participation & Subsidiarity
The Bloc has released no specific official statement concerning its policies on the responsibilities of the individual to contribute to or to participate in society.
Social & Civic Institutions
The Bloc has released no specific official statement concerning its policies on the rights of social or civic or institutions.
Christian Heritage Party Civil & Human Rights
The party states that:
– the right to life is the first human right
– freedom of Speech is the second and is essential if we are to defend any human rights
– all Canadians deserve equal treatment under the law
– it would end frivolous “human rights” cases; taxpayers’ money should not be used to promote the agenda of special-interest groups
Conscience & Religion
The party states that:
– radical Islam has proven to be a threat to Western democracy
– Sharia Law is incompatible with Canada’s culture and heritage and with Canada’s Charter of Rights and Freedoms
– it rejects Islamic cultural practices such as “honour-killings”, FGM (Female Genital Mutilation), forced marriages, forced conversion and inhumane animal slaughter (Halal slaughter)
The party advocates:
– freedom to practice all religions as long as the are not harmful to others. The freedom of religion does not protect female genital mutilation, honor killings, forced marriages, multiple wives, etc.
– restoring protection from assisted suicide and euthanasia. We want to kill the pain, not the patient
– better access to palliative comfort care, and conscience protection for health care professionals; no Canadian should be forced to violate his or her conscience
Speech & Truth
The party states that:
– freedom of speech is the second most important human right, next to the right to life
– without Freedom of Speech, we can’t defend any human rights
– most major media in Canada, including state-funded CBC, are biased against a Christian worldview and policies
The party advocates:
– using our voices and our freedom to defend our freedom – “use it or lose it!”
– de-funding CBC and confronting the issue of media bias
Gender Equity, Privacy, Private Property
The party has released no official statement concerning its policies on gender equity, privacy, or the right to hold private property.
Housing
To make housing more affordable, the party advocates:
– reducing foreign purchases of homes, businesses and farmland
– strengthening the family unit, reducing divorce and the necessity of one couple maintaining two homes
– making stay-at-home parenting more affordable
Right to Arms
The party states that:
– when guns are outlawed, only outlaws will have guns
– violent crime is the problem, not firearms
Participation & Subsidiarity
Provinces, Territories, & Municipalities
The party has released no official statement concerning its policies on the rights or responsibilities of provinces, municipalities, or territories.
Participation & Subsidiarity
The Party has released no official statement concerning its policies on the responsibilities of the individual to contribute to or to participate in society.
Social & Civic Institutions
The Party has released no official statement concerning its policies on the purposes and rights of social or civic or institutions.
Conservative Party of Canada Civil Rights & Liberties
The party states that it began and led the fight for human rights in modern Canada, most notably under Prime Minister John George Diefenbaker, and that it will continue to champion human rights for all Canadians.
Discrimination
The party states that:
– the blood ban is a human rights issue that is long overdue, and advocates ending it
– it has been clear in its opposition to conversion therapy and attempts to forcibly change a person’s sexual orientation, and that it advocates implement the ban promised by the current government, which has been repeatedly delayed. Using the Justice Department’s explanatory language about the intention of the ban, it will clarify that the ban does not criminalize non-coercive conversations, giving comfort to parents and others who fear that legitimate conversations might be criminalized
Conscience & Religion
The party advocates:
– protecting the conscience rights of healthcare professionals, in order to avoid driving them out of their professions
– encouraging faith-based and other community organizations to expand their provision of palliative and long-term care
Freedom of speech; Truth, the Press & the Media
To promote free speech on campus and ensure that Universities and colleges remain bastions of free-flowing debate and ideas, the party advocates working work with the provinces and territories to ensure that public post-secondary institutions accommodate the range of perspectives that make up Canada through a commitment to free speech and academic freedom.
Online Hate
The party states that:
– it condemns and will always oppose the dissemination of hate speech, speech that incites violence and sexually abusive material
– it will combat the growing presence of online sexual exploitation, human trafficking, and extremist groups
To better protect Canadians, the party advocates:
– fighting online incitement and hatred by clearly criminalizing statements that encourage acts of violence against other people or identifiable groups, while protecting forms of speech, criticism, and argument that do not encourage violence
– providing $25 million to law enforcement to allow them to follow up more rapidly and investigate online threats of violence, hate speech, sexual exploitation, human trafficking and disinformation campaigns by foreign governments or extremist groups
– creating a stronger legal duty for social media platforms to remove illegal content, such as content that incites violence.
The party states that it does not advocate:
– restrictions on legitimate freedom of speech. Free speech, freedom of expression, and a free press are fundamental tenets of Canadian law and Canadian democracy
– censorship of material that is not criminal in nature merely because some may find it to be offensive
Gender equity
The party states that the reality is that women in Canada experience barriers to equality of opportunity throughout their lives:
– Canadian girls, as they approach adolescence, experience higher levels of abuse and violence and greater declines in mental health and confidence than boys do
– senior women in Canada experience higher levels of abuse, violence, and poverty than men
– as has been shown recently by in-depth research published by the Globe and Mail and others, the gender pay gap is still a reality in the Canadian workforce
The party advocates a comprehensive plan to secure opportunities for women, including:
– boosting support for child care and those caring for ageing parents
– ensuring access to career training, including for non-traditional careers like the skilled trades
– helping women start and build businesses
– to increase opportunities for women, implementing a national mentorship strategy for women of all ages, including adolescent girls, to prepare them for and give them access to networks that will position them for senior leadership roles across corporate Canada and civil society
– seeking out qualified female candidates for federal appointments
– requiring federally regulated corporations and federally mandated organizations to implement formal recruitment plans to seek out qualified female candidates for senior leadership positions
– stamping out the culture of sexual harassment that persists in too many federal government institutions, including the Canadian Armed Forces and the RCMP, and ensuring that the Government of Canada serves as an example for the country of a safe and respectful work environment
The party states that:
– a safe and respectful workplace free from sexual harassment is essential for women to succeed in the workforce.
– in view of recent occurrences in the military, it will take real action to ensure that the Canadian Armed Forces – and the entire federal government – are safe and respectful workplaces, starting by ensuring that the investigation of sexual misconduct is done by investigators outside the chain of command
Privacy
The party states that:
– it believes that digital data privacy is a fundamental right that urgently requires strengthened protection through legislation and enforcement, and that Canadians must have the right to understand and control the collection, use, monitoring, retention, and disclosure of their personal data
– to that end, it advocates strong legislation to protect privacy more effectively than the current government’s Bill C-11
Housing
The party states that Canada is in a housing crisis, and that:
– affording a home – to rent, let alone to buy – is slipping out of reach of Canadians across our country
– the primary cause is that supply simply isn’t keeping up with demand. Governments have not let Canadians build enough housing to keep up with our growing population
– action is needed from all levels of government
To swiftly increase the housing supply, the party advocates implementing a plan to build 1 million homes in three years, by:
– leveraging federal infrastructure investments to increase housing supply, including building public transit infrastructure that connects homes and jobs by bringing public transit to where people are buying homes; and requiring municipalities receiving federal funding for public transit to increase density near the funded transit
– reviewing the extensive real estate portfolio of the federal government – the largest property owner in the country with over 37,000 buildings – and release at least 15% for housing while improving the Federal Lands Initiative
– incentivizing developers to build housing, by encouraging Canadians to invest in rental housing by extending the ability to defer capital gains tax when selling a rental property and reinvesting in rental housing, which is currently excluded; and exploring conversion of unneeded office space to housing
– continuing commitment to Reconciliation with Canada’s Indigenous Peoples by enacting a “For Indigenous, By Indigenous” strategy – long called for by Indigenous housing advocates – to stop to federal paternalism and promote instead partnering with Indigenous communities and empowering Indigenous Peoples with the autonomy to meet their own housing needs
– improving Community Land Trusts for affordable housing by creating an incentive for corporations and private landowners to donate property to Land Trusts for the development of affordable housing, in a manner similar to that which exists for donating land to ecological reserves
Foreign Speculation
To root out corrupt activities that drive up real estate prices and put homeownership out of reach, the party advocates:
– implementing comprehensive changes to the Proceeds of Crime (Money Laundering) and Terrorist Financing Act, to give FINTRAC, law enforcement, and prosecutors the tools necessary to identify, halt, and prosecute money-laundering in Canadian real estate markets
– establishing a federal Beneficial Ownership Registry for residential property
– closely examining the findings and recommendations of the Commission of Inquiry into Money Laundering in British Columbia, which is doing important work, and quickly implementing recommendations at the federal level
To arrest and reverse the inflationary impacts of foreign buyers and speculation in the housing market, the party advocates ensuring that housing in Canada is truly for Canadian citizens and residents first, by: banning foreign investors not living in or moving to Canada from buying homes here for a two year period after which it will be reviewed, and instead encouraging foreign investment in purpose-built rental housing that is affordable to Canadians
Home Mortgages
To make home mortgages more affordable, the party advocates:
– encouraging a new market in seven- to ten-year mortgages to provide stability both for first-time home buyers and lenders, opening another secure path to homeownership for Canadians, and reducing the need for mortgage stress tests
– removing the requirement to conduct a stress test when a homeowner renews a mortgage with another lender instead of only when staying with their current lender, as is the case today, thereby increasing increase competition and helping homeowners access more affordable options
– increasing the limit on eligibility for mortgage insurance and index it to home price inflation, allowing those in high-priced real estate markets with less than a 20% down-payment an opportunity at home-ownership
– fixing the mortgage stress test to stop discriminating against small business owners, contractors and other non-permanent employees including casual workers
– opposing taxation of capital gains on the sale of principal residences
Green Party of Canada Civil Rights & Liberties
Respect for Diversity
The party’s constitution lists, among the party’s principles, the principle of Respect for Diversity. Specifically, the party states that:
– it honours cultural, linguistic, ethnic, sexual, religious and spiritual diversity within the context of individual responsibility toward all beings.
– it defends the right of all persons, without discrimination, to an environment supportive of their dignity, bodily health, and spiritual well-being.
– it promotes the building of respectful, positive and responsible relationships across lines of division in the spirit of a multi-cultural society.
The party advocates:
– recognition of the rights of indigenous peoples to the basic means of their survival, both economic and cultural, including rights to land and to self determination; and acknowledgment of their contribution to the common heritage of national and global culture.
– recognition of the rights of ethnic minorities to develop their culture, religion and language without discrimination, and to full legal, social and cultural participation in the democratic process.
– recognition of and respect for sexual minorities.
– equality between women and men in all spheres of social, economic, political and cultural life.
– significant involvement of youth culture as a valuable contribution to our Green vision, and recognition that young people have distinct needs and modes of expression.
Racism & Discrimination
In an online policy publication presented as current as of March 2025, the party states that:
– hate is growing in Canada and around the world. Muslims, Jewish people, Black people, Asian people, LGBTQ2+ people, and other communities face rising threats. Online lies fuel hatred and division. Some political leaders even promote and exploit this division. It will fight back against all forms of hate, and work to make Canada safe and welcoming for everyone.
– no one should face violence or fear because of who they are. Canada is stronger when we celebrate our differences. Hate and fear make us weaker. Help us build a country where everyone belongs.
To stop hate, the party advocates real action, including:
– strengthening laws against hate speech and hate groups.
– funding community programs that fight discrimination.
– protecting LGBTQ2+ rights and access to gender-affirming health care.
– combatting racist practices in policing and law enforcement.
– to ensure that everyone feels safe and welcome in Canada, changing the law to make online platforms fully responsible as publishers, including legal responsibility for everything they publish, just like newspapers and TV stations, including supporting programs that teach people how to spot false information and fixing discriminatory practices in public services.
Liberal Party of Canada Civil Rights & Liberties
Conscience & Religion
The party states that it proposes providing an additional $25.4 million over five years, and $0.6 million ongoing, to the Department of Canadian Heritage to continue to support Canada’s Anti-Racism Strategy and fight all forms of racism, including but not limited to anti-Indigenous racism, anti-Black racism, anti-Asian racism, antisemitism, Islamophobia
Racism & Discrimination
In its mandate letter to the Minister for Women and Gender Equality and Youth at the beginning of its current term in office, the party instructed the Minister:
– to prioritize the development of a 10-year National Action Plan to End Gender-Based Violence, the completion of Canada’s first Federal LGBTQ2 Action Plan and the continued implementation of the Youth Policy
– to prioritize also creation of a new stream of the Youth Employment and Skills Strategy for Canadians with disabilities
The party states that:
– the nation’s commitment to embracing diversity is an example to the world and a pillar of our national character—one in three people in Canada is a member of a racialized or religious minority community. We work together, support each other, and learn and prosper by living alongside each other
– however, many racialized and religious minority communities in Canada continue to experience barriers and discrimination
The party further states that during its current term in office it has taken significant steps to fight systemic racism, discrimination, and hate, including:
– $85 million over four years to launch Canada’s new Anti-Racism Strategy
– $100 million over five years to launch the Federal 2SLGBTQI+ Action Plan
– $200 million to establish the Black-led Philanthropic Endowment Fund, and create a sustainable source of funding to support Black communities
– up to $265 million over four years for the Black Entrepreneurship Program
– $18 million over two years to support the Canadian Race Relations Foundation in delivering grants for community-level interventions to combat racism in Canada, including the rise of anti-Asian racism during the pandemic
– $21.5 million to enhance legal supports for racialized communities
– implemented the “nothing without us” Accessible Canada Act to realize a barrier-free Canada for persons with disabilities by 2040
Hate Crimes
The party states that police-reported hate crimes have increased by 72 per cent between 2019 and 2021, and that hateful rhetoric is on the rise, and misinformation and disinformation, both online and in our communities, is increasingly affecting the safety and well-being of Canadians
To confront hate in all its forms, including hate faced by 2SLGBTQI+ communities, it proposes to introduce a new Action Plan to Combat Hate, the new plan including measures to combat hateful rhetoric and acts, building on measures being taken earlier in its term in office, including:
– providing $49.5 million over five years to Public Safety Canada to enhance and expand the Communities at Risk: Security Infrastructure Program and allow it to be more responsive to the evolving security needs of communities
– providing an additional $25.4 million over five years, and $0.6 million ongoing, to the Department of Canadian Heritage to continue to support Canada’s Anti-Racism Strategy and fight all forms of racism, including but not limited to anti-Indigenous racism, anti-Black racism, anti-Asian racism, antisemitism, Islamophobia
– providing $1.5 million over two years to the Privy Council Office to create a new Anti-Racism, Equity and Inclusion Secretariat to ensure that considerations of anti-racism, equity and inclusion are applied in the development of federal government policies
Support for Black Canadian Communities
The party states that Black Canadians continue to experience persistent inequities in income and employment while also facing a higher likelihood of discrimination.
The party proposes:
– to provide $25 million to Employment and Social Development Canada for the Supporting Black Canadian Communities Initiative, to continue empowering Black-led and Black-serving community organizations and the work they do to promote inclusiveness
– to address system discrimination in public employment and to ensure that Black public servants can work in a safe and healthy environment that is equitable, diverse, and inclusive, to provide $45.9 million over three years to the Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat to create a Mental Health Fund for Black public servants and establish dedicated career development programs, including to prepare Black public service leaders for executive positions
– to address workplace harassment, discrimination and violence, to provide $6.9 million over two years to the Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat to advance a restorative engagement program to empower employees who have suffered harassment and discrimination, and to drive cultural change in the public service. Of this amount, $1.7 million would be sourced from existing departmental resources. Funding will also support a review of the processes for addressing current and historical complaints of harassment, violence, and discrimination
Freedom of speech; Truth, the press & the media
The party has released no official statement concerning its policies on truth, freedom of speech, or the media.
Gender equity
The party states that during its current term in office it has made record investments to support women and gender diverse people, and that it proposes delivering new support to build on the important progress that has been made, including providing $160 million over three years for the Women’s Program to provide funding to organizations in Canada that serve women.
Participation & Subsidiarity
The party has released no official statement concerning its policies on participation, subsidiarity, or individual responsibilities.
Social & Civic Institutions
The party has released no official statement concerning its policies on the purposes and rights of social or civic or institutions.
New Democrat Party of Canada Civil Rights & Liberties
Conscience & Religion
The party states that to address anti-Semitism, anti-Black racism, Islamophobia and other forms of hate flourishing on the internet, it advocates convening a national working group to counter online hate and protect public safety, and ensure that social media platforms are legally responsible for the removal of hateful and extremist content before it can do harm
Gender Equity
The party states that:
– our communities and our country are stronger when women thrive. II’s still all too common for women to experience discrimination and gender-based violence, particularly if they are members of a marginalized community
– gender equity is one of its fundamental values
– Canadian women make 32% less than men, and the gap is even wider for racialized women, Indigenous women, immigrant women and women with a disability, and that it advocates prioritizing pay equity by requiring employers to be transparent about pay and implementing and enforcing tough and pro-active legislation and regulations immediately
– it advocates stable core funding for women’s support and advocacy they need, when they need it, tackling of femicide and implementation of a National Action Plan to end gender-based violence, backed by funding to ensure that shelter services and other programs are available in all regions of the country, especially areas that have traditionally been under-served
– it advocates updating the Canada Labour Code to include ten days of paid leave for those dealing with family and domestic violence, improving police training on sexual assault, and requiring universities to develop plans to end sexual violence on campus
– it plans to address violence against Indigenous women, girls and LGBTQI2S+ people by working with Indigenous peoples to implement all the Calls for Justice of the National Inquiry
– so that women don’t have to choose between having a family and having a career, provision of quality, affordable not-for-profit child care
– it advocates making parental leave more flexible, making it easier to qualify for Employment Insurance, and support for more options for women to build careers in the trades and other non-traditional fields like agriculture, innovation, research and STEM
– it believes in respecting peoples’ rights to make decisions about their own bodies and their own lives. Yet many individuals seeking abortion services in Canada can’t access them – only 1 hospital in 6 offers abortion, and some provinces refuse to cover the cost of surgical abortion outside hospitals. Lack of access is even worse for people in rural areas and the North. Everyone deserves safe, accessible abortion and reproductive healthcare services – no matter where they live or how much money they make. It’s not enough for elected officials to say that they won’t reopen the abortion debate – we need leaders to take action to improve access to services. It will enforce the Canada Health Act to make sure that the provinces make medical and surgical abortion available in all parts of the country, without barriers. We will ensure that a full range of prescription contraceptive and reproductive health care options are easily accessible at no cost through Medicare and our national pharmacare program, and work with the provinces, territories and Indigenous governments to end period poverty
– finally, it will tackle obstacles to women’s political participation by reforming the electoral system and introducing legislation to encourage political parties to run more women candidates
Discrimination
Racism
The party states that:
– Indigenous and racialized people in Canada are facing a frightening evolution of hate. Racist discrimination and violence remain a reality, while extremist views are increasingly
inescapable on the internet
– it recognizes the inherent dignity of all people and the fact that racism hurts deeply, and diminishes the humanity of marginalized people
– Canada has seen a 200% increase in active hate groups in the last 5 years, with an increasing number of violent incidents targeting Muslim, Jewish and Black Canadians
– it will on white supremacist and neo-Nazi groups with a national action plan to dismantle far-right extremist organizations, including those that promote white supremacy. We’ll establish national standards for identifying and recording all hate incidents and their dispensation in the justice system and work in collaboration with non-profits to increase the reporting of hate crimes
– to address anti-Semitism, anti-Black racism, Islamophobia and other forms of hate flourishing on the internet, it advocates convening a national working group to counter online hate and protect public safety, and ensure that social media platforms are legally responsible for the removal of hateful and extremist content before it can do harm
– it advocates collection of race-based data on health, employment, policing and more with the goal of improving outcomes for racialized communities
– it advocates an immediate ban on carding by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, and working with local partners across Canada to end this practice in all jurisdictions across
the country, including a review of the information obtained through carding that has been retained by police, and an examination of how that information has been shared between the RCMP and other police forces and government agencies
– to address chronic over-representation of Indigenous peoples and Black Canadians in the federal prison population, establishing a national task force to develop a roadmap to resolution, including addressing the discriminatory impact of mandatory minimums, providing greater judicial discretion in sentencing, developing culturally appropriate bail programs, increasing restorative and community justice programs and better integrating Gladue principles in court proceedings
– it also advocates development and implementation of an African Canadian Justice Strategy , working with Black Canadians with experience and expertise on criminal justice issues
– to address employment and wage gaps for racialized Canadians, it advocates comprehensive review of existing employment equity regime, and strengthening of labour laws to ensure diverse and equitable hiring within the federal public service, and in federally-regulated industries
– it also advocates making jobs and training for under-represented groups a core part of federal infrastructure plans
LGBTQI2S+ Rights
The party states that:
– although Canada has made important strides in upholding LGBTQI2S+ rights, there is more work to be done to improve the lives of LGBTQI2S+ Canadians and make Canada a country where everyone can live free from hate and bias
– one of the most significant setbacks of recent years is the decision to maintain the discriminatory ban on blood donation by men who have sex with anyone assigned male at birth. Behaviour-based screening is needed rather than policies that discriminate against an entire sexual orientation. It will immediately end the discriminatory blood ban and put in place policies based in public health evidence to secure the blood supply
– damaging practices such as so-called “conversion therapy” have no place in Canada. It will immediately legislate a ban on conversion therapy in Canada, and work with provinces and territories to support eliminating this practice in all parts of the country. Access to gender confirming procedures and medication can be life-saving for some transgender people. It will work with the provinces to ensure that there is equal access to gender confirming surgery across the country, and that these procedures and medications are covered by public health plans
– it advocates review and elimination of systemic barriers related to gender in the delivery of federal public services, and funding to support the creation and expansion of shelters for trans youth
– Canada has a unique and important role to play in helping LGBTQI2S+ refugees around the world. It advocates establishment of a clear and permanent path for resettlement of LGBTQI2S+ refugees in Canada to replace the current piece-meal approach that only deals with emergency cases as they arise
– to end employment discrimination faced by members of the LGBTQI2S+ community, it advocates adding sexual orientation, gender identity and expression to the Employment Equity Act, in order to address the disadvantages experienced by LGBTQI2S+ communities – and particularly transgender people – in finding work
Housing
The party states that:
– everyone should have the right to a safe and affordable place to call home, that workers should be able to live close to work, including in the hearts of large cities, that young people should be able to live in the neighborhoods they grew up in, and that seniors should not be forced to move from their communities.
– before the pandemic, more than 1.7 million families spent more than 30% of their income on housing
The party advocates:
– creating 500,000 units of quality affordable housing over ten years, by investing $5 billion dollars during the first 18 months of a mix of partnerships with provinces and municipalities
– to kick-start the construction of housing co-ops, setting up dedicated fast-start funds to streamline application processes
– spurring construction of affordable rental homes by waiving the federal portion of applicable HST/GST
Food Security
The party states that Canada ranked 37th of 41 countries in access to nutritious food for children, according to UNICEF
The party advocates:
– partnering with provinces, municipalities, territories and Indigenous communities to develop a national school nutrition program, to give every child in Canada access to healthy food and understanding of nutrition
– supporting local food producers by encouraging local food hubs, community-supported agriculture, local distribution of food
– development of a national food policy and food waste strategy
– supporting Indigenous food sovereignty and access to healthy food
– reforming the Nutrition North program to improve food security for northern families
Clean Water
The party believes that it is past time for the federal government to step up and fund the services and infrastructures that Indigenous communities need to thrive, including investments required to ensure clean water and lift all drinking water advisories on Indigenous lands.
The party advocates supporting Indigenous-led water management and on-reserve emergency management training programs and water.
Privacy
The party advocates strengthening of privacy protections for Canadians by updating privacy legislation to include a digital bill of privacy rights, and boosting the powers of the Privacy Commissioner to make and enforce orders and levy fines and penalties
Participation & Subsidiarity
The party has released no official statement concerning its policies on participation, subsidiarity, or individual responsibilities.
People’s Party of Canada Civil Rights
Diversity, Equality, Inclusion
In a policy publication presented as current in March 2025, the party states that:
– Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) is a far-left ideological fad imported from the U.S. which is being imposed on all sectors of Canadian society by the current federal government.
– this hateful ideology holds that the dominant culture and the entire institutional structure of Western societies is irredeemably racist, colonialist, sexist, homophobic, and transphobic.
– according to this doctrine, mere neutrality or equal treatment of individuals is insufficient, as it allows for “unconscious bias” to still have an influence and result in discrimination and disparate outcomes. This systemic disadvantage can only be overcome by prescribing special treatment for minorities: the more a person can demonstrate that he or she belongs to various disadvantaged groups – for example, a black Muslim lesbian – the more he or she should be favoured by various programs.
– conversely, it is acceptable — or even prescribed — to officially discriminate against white, Christian, heterosexual males who do not identify as another sex or gender.
– Section 15(1) of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms states that every Canadian “is equal before and under the law and has the right to the equal protection and equal benefit of the law without discrimination.” Section 15(2) qualifies this by allowing so-called “affirmative action,” that is, “any law, program or activity that has as its object the amelioration of conditions of disadvantaged individuals or groups.”
– DEI goes much further than simply trying to ameliorate the conditions of disadvantaged people, remove unfair barriers, and provide equal opportunities. It creates legally favoured groups, and groups that can be legally discriminated against on the basis of ethnicity or religion, skin colour, sex, gender identification, and sexual orientation. In so doing, it squarely contradicts section 15(1) of the Charter.
– DEI is a fundamentally racist, sexist, and discriminatory ideology that divides Canadians into oppressors and oppressed, creates blatant injustices, and undermines social cohesion.
– the current federal government is imposing DEI programs and policies directly on the public service and all federal institutions, including the Armed Forces, as well as on federally regulated industries.
– as a condition to obtain subsidies, grants, loans, scholarships, services, or contracts, the government is also indirectly forcing all kinds of institutions, organisations, associations and businesses to adopt DEI policies. Such policies not only mandate discrimination in the hiring process and in the provision of various services; they also aim to police speech and behaviour, and impose conformity of thought at workplaces. You are either actively “anti-racist” and supportive of DEI policies, or you are a racist.
– according to far-left ideologues, refusing the tenets of DEI is itself proof that someone is intolerant, and should be grounds for disciplinary action or dismissal.
– radical adherence to DEI principles undermines one of the key foundations of liberal Western civilization: meritocracy. In a free society where everyone is equal under the law, competence, need, and other objective criteria that are fair for everyone must be the sole ones used by the state and other institutions in their dealings with citizens.
The party advocates:
– abolishing all federal DEI programs and policies in the public service and in federal institutions such as the Armed Forces, as well as those that apply to federally regulated industries.
– prohibiting DEI training sessions in all federal institutions.
– removing all DEI clauses imposed on institutions, organisations, associations and businesses as a condition to obtain federal subsidies, grants, loans, scholarships, services, or contracts.
– ending funding of groups that promote the DEI ideology.
– in all legal proceedings, narrow interpretation of section 15(2) of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms in a manner that proscribes all forms of discrimination.
– supporting Canadians who are being discriminated against, harassed, vilified, or harmed in any way by organisations that impose DEI programs and policies.
Freedom of Expression
In a policy publication presented as current in March 2025, the party states that:
– the rights of Canadians to freely hold and express beliefs are being eroded at an alarming speed under the current government. Some of its decisions even require that Canadians renounce their most deeply held moral convictions and express opinions they disagree with.
– in 2018, the Liberal government denied summer job funding to organizations, including charities, that would not sign an attestation supporting abortion. It also passed bill C-16 as part of a trend to force Canadians to express support for the existence of various gender identities beyond the biological categories of male and female, and to use pronouns demanded by those who identify with these other genders.
– in addition to these assaults on conscience, the government launched a series of regulatory attacks on free speech on the internet and is pressuring social media companies, which are already censoring speech that isn’t politically correct, to crack down even more. It is also considering bringing back Section 13 of the Canadian Human Rights Act. This hate speech provision was repealed by the Conservative government in 2013 because it was being used arbitrarily to censor statements that offended some people on the internet.
– in what appears to be a first step towards restricting our right to criticize some religions, it adopted M-103, a motion that condemns religious discrimination but only specifically mentions one religion, Islam, and without defining the term “islamophobia.”
– finally, on university campuses, a growing number of faculty and administrators—those who should be fighting for open debate of controversial ideas— have become aggressive advocates for censorship.
– history and social scientific research show that freedom of conscience and freedom of expression, when maximally protected, advance the intellectual life of a nation, foster greater ideological diversity and societal understanding, and nurture other freedoms necessary for a successful democracy. This is why Section 2 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms guarantees citizens freedom of conscience and religion, as well as freedom of thought, belief, opinion and expression, including freedom of the press and other media of communication.
– what some people find politically incorrect, offensive or even hateful cannot serve as the legal basis for discrimination and censorship. Canadians should be able to enjoy maximum freedom of conscience and expression as guaranteed in Section 2 of the Charter.
The party advocates:
– restricting the definition of hate speech in the Criminal Code to expression which explicitly advocates the use of force against identifiable groups or persons based on protected criteria such as religion, race, ethnicity, sex, or sexual orientation.
– repealing any existing legislation or regulation curtailing free speech on the internet and preventing the reinstatement of section 13 of the Canadian Human Rights Act.
– repealing Bill C-16 and Motion M-103.
– repealing Bill C-11, which could be used to regulate user content on streaming platforms.
– abolishing all public funding to Canadian media and insuring that they are completely independent and free from government influence.
– ensuring that Canadians can exercise their freedom of conscience to its fullest extent as it is intended under the Charter and are not discriminated against because of their moral convictions.
– withholding federal funding from any post-secondary institution shown to be violating the freedom of expression of its students or faculty.
Participation & Subsidiarity
The party has published no direct, specific statement concerning its policies on the responsibilities of the individual to contribute to or to participate in society.
Social & Civic Institutions
The party has published no direct, specific statement concerning its policies on the rights or roles of social or civic or institutions.
Points to Ponder Points to Ponder: Rights & Responsibilities; Subsidiarity
A conscience well formed by the social teachings of the Church will seriously consider the following questions:
Civic & Individual Rights & Responsibilities
It is clear that the nation and the provinces owe their citizens great respect for each of a broad range of human rights. But with rights come responsibilities. In fact, a right is nothing other than the flip side of an obligation (responsibility): if I have a right to something, someone else has an obligation to provide it. And while individual citizens have rights, the civil community as a whole also has rights, which means that all individual citizens have some fundamental obligations towards the civil community as a whole (the nation).
In that light, we can ask, what responsibilities do individuals have toward their communities, provinces, the nation, and the world? For example:
- To what extent are citizens called to live sustainable lifestyles, for example by conserving energy, avoiding waste, and ensuring that they minimize any adverse impacta of their activities on future generations?
- What should citizens look to their governments for, to encourage sustainable consumer lifestyles and ensure that such lifestyles are affordable?
- To what extent are citizens called to:
- participate in society, for example through informed voting, continued engagement with candidates and elected representatives, and keeping up responsibly with the news?
- lend a hand to their neighbours, for example by volunteering at home or within the community, in addition to paying taxes?
- Can our governments do anything to enable or encourage citizens to contribute by volunteer service? For example, by offering tax credits to volunteer firefighters, to those who work with the homeless or visit the sick, or to other civic volunteers?
- Under what conditions, if any, is it morally right to require health care providers to participate in morally questionable practices such as abortion or assisted death, when it is contrary to their understanding of morality or their religious beliefs?
In addition to human and civil rights, many parties speak of things residents of Canada and others “deserve.”
- How do the parties determine what citizens do or do not deserve? Do they apply predictable, objective criteria in making such determinations, or can such determinations sometimes seem arbitrary and unfair, or, in the context of elections, opportunistic? What criteria should be applied?
- As the list of our defined political rights expand, how do we reconcile conflicts between them, and how can they all be satisfied?
Inter-Government Relations & and Civil Society
- Should the powers of the Federal government be expanded or reduced?
- Should the powers of the Provincial governments be expanded or reduced?
- Is there too much government intervention in Canada or too little? Are Federal and Provincial governments fulfilling their obligations under the principle of subsidiarity to local governments and community groups by leaving to them all the decisions that responsibly can be left with them?
- Or, should the powers of government be redistributed in order to ensure that individuals, public interest groups, and service organizations have opportunities to employ their lives and talents in the service of others, and the common good?