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First published at True North on December 7, 2020.

A Charlottetown, PEI woman is filing a human rights complaint after being denied entry to a local thrift store for not wearing a mask.

Angie Laybolt was attempting to shop at Charlottetown’s Mission Thrift Store on Nov. 28, but was blocked at the door by a number of employees who eventually called police to remove Laybolt from the property.

Laybolt is a single mother and long-time customer of the store. She told True North she has not encountered issues with her mask exemption at any other Charlottetown businesses.

“This is where I do my shopping for my children,” she said. “I go in there at least once or twice a month. Every month, I shop there. It’s crazy.”

True North has reviewed video footage of the incident provided by Laybolt. A spokesperson for BFM Foundation Canada, which operates the national store chain, said the organization is “inquiring about an incident that occurred in our Charlottetown store,” but declined further comment.

PEI made masks mandatory in retail outlets provincewide on Nov. 20, but does not require anyone who cannot wear a mask for medical reasons to do so.

“Sometimes these reasons are not visible to others,” the PEI government says. “Islanders and businesses are encouraged to be trusting and kind, and show compassion and understanding in these cases.”

While individuals are not required to provide proof of exemptions, Laybolt offered up a doctor’s note she had on her person, to no avail.

She is in the process of filing a human rights complaint against the store, whose conduct amounts to discrimination, she says.

“I understand that people are angry and scared and emotional, but it doesn’t warrant the extreme measures,” Laybolt said. “I felt discriminated (against), insulted, judged. I wouldn’t allow someone I love to be disrespected so, and I won’t condone it for myself.”

While the law specifically allows for exemptions, it’s not yet clear how courts and tribunals will rule on these things, Justice Centre for Constitutional Freedoms James Kitchen said.

“On its face, it is unlawful, because you are denying somebody something based on a protected ground,” Kitchen said.

“At that point, the store is not enforcing the law, because there is no law that says that. They’re enforcing their own policy, whether (the clerk) is making it up on the spot or the store actually has a policy.”

Court rulings will ultimately come down to an assessment of what a “reasonable” accommodation would look like. For a business that offers curbside pick-up or local delivery, Kitchen said, courts or tribunals may see these as being solid enough alternatives to justify not allowing someone into a store without a mask. For a thrift store, which offers unique products with inventory not available online, that’s a harder sell.

First published at True North on November 19, 2020.

An outspoken pastor is calling out a notice from his local public health agency recommending his church shut its doors for 28 days on a “voluntary” basis to reduce the risk of COVID-19 transmission.

“When there is COVID-19 in the community, the risk of spread of infection increases when people in that community gather in groups, including faith communities,” the letter, signed by Southwestern Public Health Medical Officer of Health Dr. Joyce Lock said. “Southwestern Public Health (SWPH) is recommending that your church, along with others where we are seeing an increased risk in exposure to COVID-19, voluntarily cease in-person church services and all in-person gatherings for 28 days, beginning November 17, 2020 and ending December 14, 2020.”

Pastor Henry Hildebrandt of Aylmer, Ont.’s Church of God shared the letter on his Facebook page Thursday afternoon. It was dated Nov. 17, the same day its recommended closure was to go into effect.

“The recommendation to close your church for any in-person services or gatherings for 28 days is not made lightly and is in response to the increase in COVID-19 cases within the communities that surround your congregation including schools, long-term care homes, and retirement homes,” the letter continued. “SWPH is relying on these closures to protect individuals and the community we love.”

A spokesperson for Southwestern Public Health said the agency sent letters to “several churches.”

“These churches are in areas where we are seeing higher rates of community transmission,” the spokesperson said. “Attending church, where there may be singing, talking and long periods of sitting or standing in close proximity are higher risk situations for the spread of COVID-19.”

There is no province-wide order for places of worship to close, nor is the provincial government recommending any voluntary church closures.

“Local medical officers of health make decisions regularly using local data to supplement Ministry [of Health] directives,” the Southwestern Public Health spokesperson said. “For example, we have also asked Long Term Care Homes and Retirement Homes to temporarily suspend day and over night visits. As with the request to the churches, this is intended to mitigate risk and keep community members safe.”

“A public health professional will be following up with you soon to discuss this letter further,” the letter said. Hildebrandt noted he received a follow-up call from the health unit, which he sent to voicemail.

While the letter makes reference to “others,” Hildebrandt said he has not been able to identify any additional churches that have received a similar letter.

“I can’t find others yet. I did research – so far I can only find one pastor that got this letter from Southwestern Public Health,” he said, referring to himself.

A representative of the nearby Aylmer Evangelical Mennonite Mission Church confirmed it received no letter.

Speaking to his congregation Thursday evening, Hildebrandt called the request “crazy.”

“We are guaranteed by the government religious freedom, [freedom of] opinion and expression, peaceful assembly, association. It’s in the Charter of Rights and Freedoms,” he said. “We could never have dreamed that in Canada we would be asked by a government official, ‘Would you voluntarily close your church?’… You must be crazy.”

Lock’s letter noted that drive-in services can continue, though the church must “discourage the idling of engines.”

With the forthcoming arrival of winter, Hildebrandt said he “would encourage the idling of engines, because I don’t want you to freeze in your cars.”

The Church of God was among the first Ontario churches to host drive-in services when houses of worship had been shut down altogether by the province’s initial lockdown measures earlier in the year. After first threatening to fine the church and its congregants, Aylmer police eventually backed off, and the province issued guidelines specifically permitting drive-in church attendance.

As for Hildebrandt’s response to the latest request to close his church’s doors: “God forbid.”

First published at True North on November 2, 2020.

Canada is teaming up with Botswana to co-host this year’s Global Conference for Media Freedom, despite Botswana’s record of prosecuting journalists for reporting on government conduct and the COVID-19 pandemic.

Botswana’s constitution guarantees freedom of the press, but a section of the country’s pandemic emergency powers broadly allows the state to imprison or fine journalists who publish information about COVID-19 or the government’s response to it “with the intention to deceive.”

This provision has been criticized for being broad and vague.

A spokesperson for the governing Botswana Democratic Party said it “has become necessary to curtail some rights to prevent the spread of the virus,” according to an article in South Africa’s the Daily Maverick.

In June, the Committee to Protect Journalists called on the Botswana government to drop charges against journalists David Baaitse and Kenneth Mosekiemang, who were arrested and interrogated for seven hours as a result of their investigative journalism about Botswana’s intelligence service.

A Global Affairs Canada spokesperson said on background that Botswana was included as a co-host of this year’s conference to ensure representation from the Global South.

While the United Kingdom government is not co-hosting, the country remains the co-chair of the Media Freedom Coalition.

“Media freedom is a priority for the UK and we are committed to working with our partners around the world to promote free media and the safety of journalists,” said a spokesperson for the UK’s Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office. 

“As co-chair of the Media Freedom Coalition we continue to support its vital work, including the Global Conference on Media Freedom hosted by Canada and Botswana this year.”

At last year’s conference in London, then-foreign minister Chrystia Freeland honoured a Malaysian politician Gobind Singh Deo for his commitment to freedom of the press despite his record of calling for extraterritorial prosecution of journalists who criticize members of his government.

“There’s work for all of us to do,” Freeland said in defense of the accolades. 

“This is not meant to be a group of angels and a group of countries that are perfect. What it is meant to be is a group of countries that…sincerely appreciate the importance of media freedom.”

Freeland’s press secretary attempted to deny True North and Rebel News access to a scrum about press freedom at the same conference. Both media outlets were eventually allowed to participate when other reporters from mainstream media outlets threatened to boycott the event.

At the conclusion of the 2019 conference, Canada indicated it would be hosting 2020’s in Canada. Due to the coronavirus pandemic, the format has been switched to a virtual one, to be hosted November 16.

“We very much look forward to continuing our important work with the Media Freedom Coalition,” said Foreign Affairs Minister François-Philippe Champagne. “Join us online to show your support for media freedom, and let’s stand together in our united efforts to overcome threats to the vital work and safety of journalists around the world.”

First published at True North on October 7, 2020.

A television commercial encouraging people to reconnect with loved ones on a Niagara Falls vacation is being yanked.

The ad, first reported on Monday by True North, features a man participating in a wide variety of activities in the Ontario tourist city with his grandmother, lamenting that “quarantine has kept us apart.” The commercial features the Federal Economic Development (FedDev) Agency for Southern Ontario’s logo, even though the federal government has been encouraging people to stay home and limit exposure to other people.

Following True North’s report, a spokesperson for FedDev said the agency did not approve the ad and has requested the removal of its logo.

“FedDev Ontario did not approve the video and had not seen the video,” the spokesperson said in a statement. “We asked (the) Tourism Industry Association of Ontario, with whom we have a contribution agreement, to reach out to Niagara Falls Tourism to request adjustments to reflect the public health situation and guidelines. We have also asked that they remove the federal identity program logo.”

FedDev Ontario provides funding to the Tourism Industry Association of Ontario, a private industry group that in turn supports individual tourism agencies, such as Niagara Falls Tourism.

Tourism Industry Association of Ontario media relations manager Jessica Halliday said Tuesday the ad will be pulled from circulation altogether.

“Due to the recent increase in case numbers and the rising health concerns, the video will be taken down,” she said.

As of Wednesday afternoon, it still appears on YouTube with the Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario’s logo.

Despite distancing itself from this particular advertising campaign, FedDev is committed to helping southern Ontario rebuild the tourism industry, which is among the sectors hardest hit by COVID-19.

“Recognizing the significant impact that COVID-19 has had on tourism, the Government of Canada continues to support the recovery and growth of this important industry and it does so while complying with the highest standard of public health measures,” the agency spokesperson said. “Protecting Canadians from COVID-19 has been and continues to be the Government of Canada’s number one priority. We continue to urge Canadians to follow Public Health guidelines in all their activities.”