Conservative who published Prophet cartoons faces rights commission

[Jeremiah]

http://www.youtube.com/v/3iMNM1tef7g&eurl


"Gotta love that freedom of speech"

Outspoken conservative commentator Ezra Levant will be before the Alberta Human Rights Commission Friday defending his former magazine's 2006 publication of a series of Danish cartoons depicting the Prophet Muhammad.

Members of Calgary's Muslim community were outraged when Levant's now-defunct publication, the Western Standard, published the cartoons in February 2006, shortly after their initial appearance in a Danish newspaper led to rioting and protests around the world.

Syed Soharwardy, president of the Islamic Supreme Council of Canada, later filed a complaint against the Western Standard to the Alberta Human Rights Commission.

Levant, the magazine's former publisher, will be on the hot seat today in Calgary during a commission investigation - a process he calls an "interrogation" - in which he'll be questioned extensively about the publication of the cartoons.

The human rights commission could then order a full hearing into the matter if it deems it necessary, he said.

"I object to the whole proceeding. It doesn't have any moral authority," Levant said Thursday in an interview.

"Free speech is a human right."

Soharwardy, who isn't expected at the proceeding, couldn't be reached for comment Thursday.

www.canada.com . . .

[MaDuce]

I wonder if that had been a cartoon of Jesus???

[JJC]

Is this Human Rights Commission Canadian or some international org.? Does Canadian law empower this commission to force people to testify, or it's all voluntary?

[Mu-Meson]

Members of Calgary's Muslim community were outraged

Err, more like self-appointed spokespersons for the Muslim community were outraged.
These HRC's are f**king outrageous. Little Green Footballs has some good footage of this travesty. Levant rips into that petty bureaucrat hard.
Is this what Canada has become? Tolerance for those who call for Sharia, and interrogations for the press?
JJC, these HRC's aren't voluntary. They are quasi-legal organizations that make a mockery of Canadian, and universal human rights. The worst thing is that us Joe Canucks have to pay for it!

[JJC]

Err, more like self-appointed spokespersons for the Muslim community were outraged.
These HRC's are f**king outrageous. Little Green Footballs has some good footage of this travesty. Levant rips into that petty bureaucrat hard.
Is this what Canada has become? Tolerance for those who call for Sharia, and interrogations for the press?
JJC, these HRC's aren't voluntary. They are quasi-legal organizations that make a mockery of Canadian, and universal human rights. The worst thing is that us Joe Canucks have to pay for it!

O.K. I see they're just Canadian. I know that the U.N. Human Rights Council/Commission has no power whatsoever to order individual non state actors into trial/investigation. That's have the system works in general with them. Individual non state actors have better representation in the European human rights courts.

[Rictor]

I have no idea who this guy is, but he gets my kudos. Said exactly the right thing in the right way.

[LaoSexMachine]

I have no idea who this guy is, but he gets my kudos. Said exactly the right thing in the right way.

x2. human rights violation because you percieve a cartoon is an afront to your belief? welcome to democracy. if you dont like tough shat.

[Kingswat]

The human rights commision here found a cop guilty of breaching some guys rights because in the span of a few months ran the guys plates a ton of times and ended up arresting him for being in a stolen car. They said the cop did it because the guy was black, the cop has no job anymore and the police chief even said they were sorry. It's all a joke and was probably one of the worst things created in the country.

[9mmRifle]

I wonder if that had been a cartoon of Jesus??? Maybe the people who made 'PissChrist' and 'Monty Python Life of Brian' can be stoned to death because this sort of stuff offends peaceful loving (™) zealots.

[MaDuce]

http://www.filibustercartoons.com/comics/20060204.gif

[Angrykirill]

Well if you consider that the danish cartoons showed him with a bomb and ass****ing a dog it's not a fully correct comparison; but your point does stand, I agree.

[phoebus]

People should be free to publish and express themselves, with limits to not promote criminal behaviour. In this case especially religious grounds shouldn't be at all relevant in controlling/cencoring publications and opinions. I support this guy, fully.

[phoebus]

I wonder if that had been a cartoon of Jesus???

Most probably Mel Gibson would kick some arse :)

In all seriousness, although I would be deeply offended as an Orthodox Christian, I would not go as far as taking poeple to court for that or asking for the state to ban/cencor publications. I think the Middle Ages are over... :roll:

[CG51]

http://www.filibustercartoons.com/comics/20060204.gif

Amen, ain't that the truth. roflroflrofl

[MaDuce]

Well if you consider that the danish cartoons showed him with a bomb and ass****ing a dog it's not a fully correct comparison; but your point does stand, I agree.
You have a point there a better example would be the Cartoon Wars episodes of South Park oddly enough. Comedy Central decided to censor Muhammad doing something benign but allowed Jesus to be shown defecating all over the place.

Part 1- http://www.southparkzone.com/episodes/1003/Cartoon-Wars-Part-I.html

Part 2- http://www.southparkzone.com/episodes/1004/Cartoon-Wars-Part-II.html

[marius]

Mr. Levant is making a lot of sense. But I am surprised that things have gotten that out of hand in Canada.


Well if you consider that the danish cartoons showed him with a bomb and ass****ing a dog it's not a fully correct comparison; but your point does stand, I agree.

Just for the record: the dog scene comes out of your own imagination(!)

The original 12 drawing can be seen at Ezra Levants website http://www.ezralevant.com/
The are rather boring and sad in a way, as most of them display a degree of anxiety.

The dog drawing Angrykirill may be thinking of could be the drawing by the swedish artist Lars Vilks, in which Mohammed is portrayed with the body of a dog.
Needless to say Mr. Vilks is now in hiding and the Islamists reward for killing him holds a bonus for cruelty.

[Bombtrack]

http://www.youtube.com/watch/v/d0BGwPHvskI

[Lazy Lob]

What a bunch of twats. Good for Levant.


My lawyers have just received a copy of a letter from the Alberta Human Rights Commission dismissing the complaint of “discrimination” filed against me by the radical Edmonton Council of Muslim Communities. They had complained that by publishing the Danish cartoons of Mohammed in the Western Standard in February 2006, I had engaged in an illegal act.

Their complaint was identical to the one filed earlier by an anti-Semitic imam named Syed Soharwardy. Soharwardy abandoned his complaint this spring. You can see Soharwardy’s complaint here; it named both me and the magazine. The Edmonton complaint named just the magazine. My initial legal response is here.

The two complaints cost Alberta taxpayers in excess of $500,000 and, according to access to information documents, involved no fewer than 15 government bureaucrats. What a scam – on the part of the complainants, who were able to wage “lawfare” against an infidel without paying a cent; and on the part of the HRC, as a make-work project.

http://ezralevant.com/

[annihilation]

I wonder if that had been a cartoon of Jesus???

It was done in south park and nothing happened.

[Supplanter]

I wonder if that had been a cartoon of Jesus???
While this thread is old, since LazyLob brought it back to life I thought I'd add this.

:bash:

A B.C. man has filed a human-rights complaint alleging religious discrimination after a TV personality flew a plane pulling a "Jesus sucks" banner over Toronto.
http://www.canada.com/topics/news/national/story.html?id=b120c918-ce63-426a-8406-3cf50d2025f2

[Calanen]

http://www.640toronto.com/hostsandshows/johnoakley/audio.aspx

Scroll down to Syed Soharwady and click for the interview and debate between the nutjob Imam Syed Soharwady and Ezra Levant on 640AM, Toronto radio. It ends with the representative of the Religion of Peace™ threatening Ezra Levant, telling him that he will 'soon pay'.

[Lazy Lob]

http://www.640toronto.com/hostsandshows/johnoakley/audio.aspx

Scroll down to Syed Soharwady and click for the interview and debate between the nutjob Imam Syed Soharwady and Ezra Levant on 640AM, Toronto radio. It ends with the representative of the Religion of Peace™ threatening Ezra Levant, telling him that he will 'soon pay'.

These "female canines" can't hold their tongues and always show their true colours. I did emit a slight lulz.

This isn't cricket.

[koalorka]

A synopsis of our pathetic apologist culture:

http://img175.imageshack.us/img175/9339/gm070802jn6.jpg (http://imageshack.us)