CALGARY—Alberta Premier Jason Kenney intends to follow Ontario in asking the province’s universities and colleges to conform to free-speech guidelines, but freedom of expression experts say the move is mostly about optics among a right-leaning base.

The post-secondary education section of the United Conservative Party platform says the government will require the province’s universities and colleges to “develop, post and comply with free speech policies that conform to the University of Chicago Statement on Principles of Free Expression.”

Often called the “Chicago principles,” the statement is the result of a university committee assembled in 2014 to state the school’s commitment to freedom of expression. The short report says, “It is not the proper role of the university to attempt to shield individuals from ideas and opinions they find unwelcome, disagreeable, or even deeply offensive.”

Numerous other schools across the United States have also adopted the statement since the report was published in 2015.

But the principles attracted much more public attention in 2016, when the university’s dean of students wrote a letter to the incoming class that said the school’s views on freedom of expression mean they don’t support “trigger warnings” or “intellectual safe spaces.”

James Turk, the director of Ryerson University’s Centre for Free Expression in Toronto, said the Chicago principles are a good affirmation of the importance of freedom of expression. The report also recognizes that there are limits to freedom of expression, including speech that violates the law or constitutes threats or harassment.

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But Turk also sees the dean of students’ letter as an appeal to wealthy, right-wing donors. He said it drew the attention of the U.S. political right, which picked up the Chicago principles as a model for protecting free speech on campus, and conservative Canadian politicians are now using it themselves as a “dog-whistle blow.”

“That’s how Kenney and (Ontario Premier Doug) Ford have happened to pitch Chicago, as opposed to Stanford or a dozen other (freedom of speech principles) that are equally appropriate,” he said. “This is not about free expression. This is about playing to a base.”

The Chicago principles were crafted in the U.S., and the law on freedom of expression is slightly different in Canada. In this country, the wilful promotion of hate against members of groups defined under protected grounds can be considered hate speech, and lead to criminal charges. Some provinces, including Alberta, also have hate speech provisions in their human rights codes. U.S. law, on the other hand, restricts speech only if it’s clearly inciting violence.

Ontario and Alberta have both seen a handful of free-speech debates bubble over on university campuses in recent years. At the University of Ottawa, far-right commentator Ann Coulter cancelled a speaking appearance at the school in 2010 over apparent safety concerns when a large group protested the event. And at the University of Alberta in 2016, an anti-abortion group took the university to court when they were told they’d have to pay for security costs to hold a rally in the university’s central quad — there was tension the year before when an organized counter-protest showed up in response to a graphic anti-abortion display.

Turk said those events become highly politicized, painting an inaccurate picture about free speech being eroded on campuses.

“Those are really rare. It’s very much a ‘man bites dog’ story, but people get the impression: ‘Oh my God, look what’s happening at universities.”

University of Windsor law professor Richard Moon, who specializes in hate speech and freedom of expression, agrees that he doesn’t see a crisis that political leaders need to address. Universities already have and conform to their own policies about expression and academic freedom, and so far, it’s unclear what role governments see themselves playing.

In Ontario, Ford gave schools a Jan. 1, 2019 deadline to implement the free-speech policies or face funding cuts. Kenney hasn’t said whether Alberta institutions could face the same consequences. As of Monday evening, the provincial government hadn’t responded to Star Calgary questions about its plan to implement the Chicago principles.

“The whole tone and tenor of the Chicago principles really does reflect the American free speech traditions,” Moon said.

“We don’t know the willingness of provincial governments to discipline universities for failing to live up to what they understand those principles require,” Moon said.

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But Turk said he’s concerned about governments reaching too far. In his view, the word “comply” in the UCP platform could point to looming penalties.

“That’s the kind of intrusion that’s entirely inappropriate if universities are going to fulfil their social role,” he said.

“They are opening the door to a very American-style model of university funding, which is highly politicized and really intrusive into what the universities are.”

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