Liberals roll out more security cash, details in strategy for fighting hate

OTTAWA — The Liberal government is announcing more details on its existing strategy and funding to fight a rise in hate crimes targeting multiple communities.

Diversity Minister Kamal Khera released the Action Plan on Combatting Hate last week, which aims to co-ordinate how various departments promote diversity and prevent violent incidents and speech online targeting minorities.

Khera said the funding is needed because Statistics Canada is reporting an increase in hate crimes involving Jews, Muslims, LGBTQ+ people and other communities.

“Whether it is online or on our streets, hateful words (and) actions are having a devastating impact on our communities and our entire country, whether it is our mosques being attacked, communities being divided or even losing loved ones,” she said outside a mosque in Brampton, Ont.

She noted the arrest last week of a London, Ont. man whom police say had verbally harassed a woman wearing an Islamic headscarf and brandished a knife. A self-described white nationalist in that same southwestern Ontario city murdered four members of a Muslim family in 2021 in what a judge ruled to be an act of terrorism.

“We cannot allow hate to go unchecked; the cost of inaction is far too great,” Khera said.

The action plan released last Tuesday details how Ottawa intends to spend the $273.6 million the Liberals allocated in this April’s budget for various programs, over the course of six years.

Khera said that allocation includes a $65 million top-up to a fund that helps community institutions and religious centres cover the cost of installing cameras or hiring security guards. She noted Ottawa has increased the annual amount of cash institutions can apply for, such as those who feel it’s necessary to get round-the-clock security.

The Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs said the extra cash for security is “very welcome as many institutions have been stretched beyond capacity,” noting Jewish schools have been shot at, synagogues have been vandalized and Jewish businesses have been set ablaze.

Tuesday’s action plan largely reiterates work that federal departments and agencies are already doing, with the idea of creating consultation panels that can spot gaps in laws and programs or address barriers to implementing an existing Anti-Racism Strategy.

It listed various programs helping anti-racism organizations to monitor and combat online hatred, as well as training for Crown prosecutors on “the unique dynamics of hate crimes.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 29, 2024

Dylan Robertson, The Canadian Press