Niagara Falls Sign Ban to Become Inaugural Censorship Defence Fund Case

NIAGARA FALLS — The Canadian Constitution Foundation (CCF) has filed a constitutional challenge in support of a group of women who were arrested for silently protesting during a Niagara Falls City Council meeting on June 17. The applicant, Lauren O’Connor, was among the demonstrators arrested for holding small paper signs which read “The Women of Ontario Say No” to advocate for stronger accountability for local officials facing criminal charges.

After being denied the chance to speak as a delegation, members of the advocacy group Women of Ontario Say No (WOSN) attended the council meeting and held the signs non-disruptively in their laps. Mayor James Diodati refused to begin proceedings until the signs were put away, citing the Decorum Policy for Public Meetings which bans all signs and “symbolic materials” inside council chambers. Police were called when the women refused, and three of them, including Ms. O’Connor, were arrested for trespassing. No charges were laid.

Banning all signs and symbols is an unjustified and extreme limit on free expression. Courts have previously ruled that governments must use the least restrictive means possible when limiting constitutional rights, and in this case, the city's response was not only excessive but failed to meet the legal test of proportionality under the Charter of Rights and Freedoms.

CCF Director of Litigation Christine Van Geyn has twice written to the City of Niagara Falls requesting it withdraw the sign ban or face legal consequences, but no response was issued.

“These women were denied the chance to speak, chastised for holding paper, and then arrested for quietly expressing their views,” said Van Geyn. “That is not how a democratic government should treat the voices of its citizens. Banning signs is an attempt to ban certain ideas outright, and is a flagrantly unconstitutional violation of the free expression guaranteed to Canadians by the Charter.”

This is the first legal challenge funded by the CCF’s Censorship Defence Fund, established to fight speech restrictions at the municipal level. In June, Canada’s Most Censorious Bylaws, a report exposing local laws curtailing freedom of expression, uncovered a disturbing, growing trend of unconstitutional bylaws across the country.

Ms. O’Connor will be represented by Kristopher Kinsinger of SV Law on behalf of the CCF.
LINKS: Notice of Application

The Canadian Constitution Foundation (CCF) is a registered charity, independent and non-partisan. We defend the constitutional rights and freedoms of Canadians in the courts of law and public opinion.

For further information, contact:
Christine Van GeynLitigation Director
Canadian Constitution Foundation
1-888-695-9105 x. 103
cvangeyn@theccf.ca

Joanna Baron
Executive Director
Canadian Constitution Foundation
1-888-695-9105 x. 101
jbaron@theccf.ca

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