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Levesque explained that the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms guarantees freedom of opinion, thought and expression, while reasonable restrictions have been placed on that freedom within the hate propaganda sections of the Criminal Code.

However, the criteria for charges under Sections 318 and 319 of the Criminal Code are very stringent and the threshold very high, Levesque added.

“Offensiveness is irrelevant. The intent of these sections is to discourage persons from promoting hate toward identifiable groups with the goal of encouraging others to discriminate against them.”

Safeguards are also put in place to ensure that public debate is still possible on controversial issues, he added.

“It’s a very limited scope. Freedom of expression is critical in our society and we have to be very careful about trying to prosecute people just because we don’t like something they said or because they voice a viewpoint that the majority don’t share.”

Umair Tazeem, president of the Muslim Students’ Association at the U of C, said as a political science student he is well-versed in freedom of expression law and he wasn’t surprised or disappointed that police wouldn’t be pursuing charges.

“I understand that just because I’m offended by something, it doesn’t mean a crime has been committed,” Tazeem said.

“But this is an indication that there is still a lack of knowledge and misinformation about Islam. And it’s our job as students, and as a campus, to continue to increase awareness and education.”