Free speech? The Canadian Islamic Congress...

...takes on Maclean's magazine and Mark Steyn. Don't you just love those human rights commissions? (Via Norman's Spectator; italicized part from another, reliable source.)

THE CANADIAN ISLAMIC CONGRESS

PRESS CONFERENCE ANNOUNCEMENT

ISLAMIC CONGRESS LAUNCHES HUMAN RIGHTS COMPLAINTS AGAINST MACLEANS MAGAZINE FOR PUBLISHING ISLAMOPHOBIC ARTICLE

WHEN:
Tuesday, December 4, 2007 At 10:30 am

WHERE:
The Niagara Room (Lower Lobby),
Hotel Intercontinental,
Downtown Toronto next to the Metro Toronto Convention Centre,
225 Front Street West,
Toronto, Ontario.

WHO:
Faisal Joseph, CIC's Legal Counsel, Partner with the Law Firm of Lerners LLP. Mr. Joseph is a former Federal and Provincial Crown Attorney, and former Chair of the Criminal Section of the Canadian Bar Association (Nova Scotia).

WHAT:

The Canadian Islamic Congress has launched human rights complaints against Macleans Magazine and its editor-in-chief, Kenneth Whyte, for publishing a flagrantly Islamophobic article, "The Future Belongs to Islam", in its Oct 23, 2006 issue.

This article continues to be published on the Macleans website

The future belongs to Islam | Macleans.ca - Canada - Features

The complaints have been submitted to the British Columbia, Ontario, and Federal Human Rights Commissions on the grounds that the article subjects Canadian Muslims to hatred and contempt.

The complaints have been accepted by the British Columbia and the Federal Commissions; hearings have been scheduled in British Columbia for June 2 - 6, 2008.

The press conference will be conducted by Mr. Faisal Joseph who will be arguing the matter before the BC Human Rights Tribunal.

CONTACT:

Faisal Joseph

(519) 640-6342

Don't miss it if you're in the GTA. More on the Congress, hate crimes and free speech here. Dr. Mohamed Elmasry, of Waterloo University, remains Chair & National President.

A nice final shot from Mr Spector:

--What the Canadian Islamic Conference is saying about the 2 stories below

British teacher charged with insulting Islam over teddy bear's name

Saudi Rights Advocate Fights Back

(Several blank lines)

Mark C.

Damian adds: after this controversy, you'd think Elmasry and the CIC would be more appreciative of the right to free expression. You'd think...

Mark adds: On other parts of the Western front:

Only rich Iranians wanted democracy, he declared. The true voice of the masses, the tribune of the people we must attend to and negotiate with, was Mahmoud Ahmadinejad...

As for Mr Ahmadinejad, one might well say this sub-head in the Ottawa Citizen is a bit of understatement:

Iran weighs in with pessimistic [exterminationist - MC?] view of peace effort

[...]

"It is impossible that the Zionist regime will survive. Collapse is in the nature of this regime because it has been created on aggression, lying, oppression and crime," Mr. Ahmadinejad said following an Iranian cabinet meeting...

But of course he doesn't really mean it. Does he? I think what happens depends on what one's society's leaders ask one to do, after considerable propaganda.

Posted by markc at November 29, 2007 07:41 PM