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As a Canadian Muslim and a Canadian Jew, we are both deeply concerned with the curtailments of religious freedoms in one of the nation’s largest provinces.

Late last month, Quebec passed legislation, Bill 21, that would limit the wearing of religious clothing by various public sector workers, including teachers, police officers, lawyers and judges. By passing the law despite protests and promises of civil disobedience, the government has demonstrated how we are all correct to fear the tyranny of the majority. It is exactly what our Charter of Rights and Freedoms was meant to protect against.

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The Charter “stands as Canada’s ultimate expression of our commitment to freedom and human dignity,” opined Beverley McLachlin, former Supreme Court Chief Justice. “(It) provides all of us, regardless of race, religion, or gender, with a secure space in which to realize our aspirations.”

The Charter is among the reasons people immigrate to Canada; its promise of freedom and multiculturalism serves as a beacon for those “fleeing persecution, terror & war,” as Prime Minister Justin Trudeaufamously tweeted in 2017. Just as the U.S. president was signing the first so-called “Muslim ban,” Canada’s federal government was distancing itself as far as it could from the politics of fear and division.