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Free Speech and the Kwantlen First Nation

In a letter to the chief and council of the Kwantlen First Nation, the British Columbia Civil Liberties Association (BCCLA) argues that section 2(b) of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms applies to First Nations people.

Section 2(b) protects the fundamental freedoms of “thought, belief, opinion and expression, including freedom of the press and other media of communication.”

The BCCLA sent the letter on September 3, 2020, after the association learned that some members of the Kwantlen First Nation were struggling to speak freely about the reform of government on the reserve.


REPORTAGE

Angela Sterritt of CBC News reports:

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/right-to-freedom-speech-in-first-nations-ambiguous-until-now-1.5729969

Tyler Dawson of Postmedia reports:

https://www.brantfordexpositor.ca/news/first-nation-members-have-free-speech-rights-on-reserves-says-b-c-civil-liberties-group/wcm/d2f7be3b-ca2f-4186-b6c4-7e8041cf8d91


COMMENTARY

Read the BCCLA’s letter:

https://yellowheadinstitute.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/bccla.pdf

At the Yellowhead Institute, Robert Jago comments:


News byte courtesy: R. Franklin Carter