The city will hire a consultant to gather public feedback on ways to counteract hate-related activity in Hamilton.

Councillors have also supported a new trespassing bylaw that aims to tame unsavoury behaviour in the city hall forecourt and other municipal properties.

Mayor Fred Eisenberger emphasized the bylaw is just one tool city officials will have at their disposal — it's not a panacea.

"This does not solve the problem," Eisenberger said during Wednesday's general issues committee meeting.

City officials have been under increasing pressure to stamp out regular Saturday rallies held by anti-immigration protesters in the city hall plaza.

The call to action intensified after white nationalists and religious anti-LGBTQ demonstrators crashed Pride celebrations in Gage Park in June.

Counterprotesters positioned a large fabric screen in front of the homophobic display. Kicks, punches and shoves ensued.

The bylaw stipulates "prohibited conduct" includes "interference with others' use of a city premises" and "contravention of a City of Hamilton policy governing the conduct of persons entering city premises."

City solicitor Nicole Auty said the bylaw was drafted with broad language to give the city "the most opportunity to deal with the many situations that we have."

An existing municipal policy that bars violence and vulgar language at city recreation centres wouldn't necessarily apply to hate incidents in the forecourt, she said.

Coun. John-Paul Danko noted he has witnessed a litany of sketchy conduct in the plaza during anti-immigration rallies, which pro-diversity advocates have countered.

This has included people grabbing signs, swearing, trying to pick fights and even a school bus driving onto the curb, Danko said.

"They don't necessarily cross the line into hate speech. They don't necessarily break a law, or a city bylaw in a lot of cases. It's just an angry, disruptive jackass."

Auty said the new bylaw, which police had requested the city create, would serve as "an extra tool" for officers. "We really are targeting those individual on-the-moment behaviours in those situations."

Bans for bad behaviour would follow a "tiered approach," she said.

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For example, bylaw officers could ban people for as long as a week to handle "situations of immediacy." But senior staff would have to decide prohibitions of up to three years, and general managers or the city manager would deal with anything above five years.

Councillors debated whether a designated "appeal officer" would be appropriate to handle formal pushback to no-trespass orders or if a tribunal would be more appropriate.

"We do have a highly volatile area of the law. We're dealing with civil liberties," Coun. Terry Whitehead said in arguing for the tribunal.

Coun. Brad Clark said the bylaw isn't meant to trample charter rights. "This is a tool that police need when they're trying to keep the peace and they'll use it judicially."

The city expects to hire a consultant by the end of October with a start date of Nov. 11. The community engagement exercise is expected to start that same month and wrap up in April 2020. A final recommendations report is anticipated in September.

Coun. Maureen Wilson said it's important the review doesn't place the onus on those affected by hate incidents to "justify a reality of your life."

Wilson also said it's crucial for the process to acknowledge that "hate is not new in this community."

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