Lawyering free speech down to size

... or how a few Canadians are making their nation a scary laughingstock.

Ezra Levant:

"The Canadian Human Rights Commission has said and done some pretty appalling things over the years, but one of their most-publicized embarrassments was when Dean Steacy, the CHRC 'hate speech' investigator, famously testified that at the CHRC, 'freedom of speech is an American concept, so I don't give it any value.' ...

"According to the closing arguments filed last week by the CHRC in the Warman v. Lemire 'hate speech' case, Steacy was correctly enunciating CHRC policy: they don't believe in 'freedom of speech' -- that's American. See paragraph 48 of their submissions, here.

[In part] 'Mr. Steacy did not testify that the Commission gives no value to freedom of expression because it is an American concept as alleged by the respondent(.) What Mr. Steacy said, [sic] was that the Commission distinguishes between American notions of "freedom of speech" and the different Canadian value of "freedom of expression."'

Huh?

Freedom of speech is part of freedom of expression. Speech is a form of expression -- the most common form. Is that really the best the CHRC can do to explain away Steacy's incorrect, bullying, and un-Canadian statement?"

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Okay. I guess it depends on what your definition of "is" is.

Read the whole thing.

(via Blazing Cat Fur)