M103, Canada

M103 doesn't seem like it would have any relation to Alberta politics.  It's a federal motion and the Alberta government isn't involved.  The opposition parties haven't said anything (but people are baiting them on Twitter).  The problem I've seen is how many people are complaining about a federal motion that does not attack their freedom of speech is an attack on their freedom of speech.  That part is confusing. M103 is not.

Back in June of 2016, Samer Majzoub from Pierrefonds, Quebec started a petition that was sponsored by his MP, Frank Baylis.  His petition was simple; asking the government to "join us in recognizing that extremist individuals do not represent the religion of Islam, and in condemning all forms of Islamophobia."  The petition received almost 70,000 signatures.  The highest numbers (over 3,000) came from Ontario with 43,573, Quebec with 12,308 and Alberta with 7,760.  The government responded in December stating "(t)he Government of Canada condemns all forms of racism and discrimination, including Islamophobia".

The official text is below:

That, in the opinion of the House, the government should: 

(a) recognize the need to quell the increasing public climate of hate and fear; 

(b) condemn Islamophobia and all forms of systemic racism and religious discrimination and take note of House of Commons’ petition e-411 and the issues raised by it; and 

(c) request that the Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage undertake a study on how the government could

         (i) develop a whole-of-government approach to reducing or eliminating systemic racism and religious discrimination including Islamophobia, in Canada, while ensuring a community-centered focus with a holistic response through evidence-based policy-making, 

         (ii) collect data to contextualize hate crime reports and to conduct needs assessments for impacted communities, and that the Committee should present its findings and recommendations to the House no later than 240 calendar days from the adoption of this motion, provided that in its report, the Committee should make recommendations that the government may use to better reflect the enshrined rights and freedoms in the Constitution Acts, including the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms.

To me, this seems like a reasonable request as the government has supported a motion and issued statements in the past on anti-Semitism... twice... or three times (and I only went through Google's first page). For comparison, the text of the anti-Semitism motion is below:

That, in the opinion of the House:

a) there has been, in the words of the Joint Statement issued following the meeting of the United Nations General Assembly  on January 22, 2015, “an alarming increase in Antisemitism worldwide,” including the firebombing of synagogues and community centres, the vandalizing of Jewish memorials and cemeteries, incendiary calls for the destruction of Israel and the Jewish people, and anti-Jewish terror;

b) this global anti-Semitism constitutes not only a threat to Jews but an assault on our shared democratic values and our common humanity;

Therefore the House:

a) declares its categorical condemnation of anti-Semitism;

b) reaffirms the importance of the Ottawa Protocol on Combating anti-Semitism as a model for domestic and international implementation;

c) reaffirms, in the words of the Ottawa Protocol, that, “Criticism of Israel is not antisemitic, and saying so is wrong. But singling Israel out for selective condemnation and opprobrium – let alone denying its right to exist or seeking its destruction – is discriminatory and hateful, and not saying so is dishonest;”

And the House further calls upon the government to:

a) continue advancing the combating of anti-Semitism as a domestic and international priority;

b) expand engagement with civil society, community groups, educators, and other levels of government to combat anti-Semitism and to promote respect, tolerance, and mutual understanding

 I just want to point out that there were no calls for Anti-Semitism to be defined.  In fact Irwin Cotler, the MP who brought the anti-Semitism motion forward in 2015, has suggested that "Islamophobia" be changed to "anti-Muslim bigotry" because it is "a misunderstood word".  To me, that makes it even more important that this motion should go through and perhaps the public could be educated to understand that "Islamophobia" is akin to "Anti-Semitism".

D.