Even Peter Kormas Is Shaking His Head At Antics Of HRC

Human Rights Commission is out of control

By CHRISTINA BLIZZARD

Once upon a time, it was simply a pain in the butt.

For the last two years, though, the Ontario Human Rights Commission (OHRC) has become an out-of-control juggernaut, rolling over unsuspecting bystanders in its path.

Fair enough, OHRC has always been a tad controversial -- some might say off-the-wall -- in its rulings.

But recent changes, and the way they are being implemented by Commissioner Barbara Hall, are pitting human rights protection against our fundamental rights to freedom of speech and freedom of religion.

Hall, a former Toronto mayor, appears to have gone completely over the top in her comments on an article by journalist Mark Steyn, "The future belongs to Islam," that appeared in Maclean's magazine.

Responding to a complaint by the Canadian Islamic Congress and some law students, Hall stated, correctly, the OHRC has no jurisdiction to hear the case. All the same, she went on to say this:

"The Commission strongly condemns the Islamophobic portrayal of Muslims, Arabs, South Asians and indeed any racialized community in the media ... "

So she basically said the OHRC can't judge the issue -- and then proceeded to judge it.

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