Marc Lemire
Encyclopedia
Marc Lemire is a figure in the Canadian
white supremacist
movement. He works closely with leader Paul Fromm, and is the webmaster of the Hamilton, Ontario
-based Freedom-Site which he began in 1996. He has been called a "bigot" by Jonathan Kay of the National Post
. Formerly of Toronto and now living in Hamilton, Lemire was the last president of the often violent Heritage Front
organization from January 1, 2001 until the organization folded around 2005.
. In their 1997 Annual Audit of Antisemitic Incidents, B'nai Brith Canada wrote, "Marc Lemire, webmaster of the Freedom-Site that hosts the websites of several of Canada’s most virulent antisemitic organizations such as the Heritage Front, The Canadian Patriots Network and the Citizens for Foreign Aid Reform
". In 1998, the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation called The Canadian Patriots Network a "hate website".
Lemire's involvement with Wolfgang Droege
and the neo-Nazi Heritage Front
group began while he was a teenager in the early 1990s. When the Heritage Front fell into crisis around 1993, he attempted independent projects on the far right, such as his Canadian Patriots Network before embarking in his online activities. He resumed his activity with the Heritage Front within a few years, and according to the Heritage Front website, Lemire helped organize a Heritage Front flyer campaign in 2001. The flyers were titled in part Immigration can kill you, and claimed that there was a connection between immigration and an outbreak of tuberculosis.
Lemire was briefly a member of the Canadian Alliance
, a mainstream conservative
Canadian party — along with several other far-right figures, such as Paul Fromm, Doug Christie
and Doug Collins
— until late 2000 when, according to The Report newsmagazine, they were all expelled from the party.
found that postings by Craig Harrison on the Freedom-Site forum (an interactive message forum on Lemire's website) contained violations of Section 13 of the Canadian Human Rights Act. No liability was found against Lemire, although the Tribunal did issue a decision that "compelled" Lemire to provide evidence during the hearing. A total of eight people in Canada viewed the material.
A complaint was also laid against Lemire for allegedly "communicating and/or causing to be communicated" messages in violation of section 13 of the Canadian Human Rights Act
. Hearings before the Canadian Human Rights Tribunal began February 2007.
On November 25, 2005, Lemire filed a Notice of Constitutional Question with every Attorney General
in Canada, against the Canadian Human Rights Act
, in which he challenged the constitutionality of sections 13 (Internet hate) and 54(1)(1.1) (Fines) of the Canadian Human Rights Act
. Specifically he argued that they are in violation of ss. 2(a) and (b), 7, 26 and 31 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms
. A violation of ss. 1(d) and (f) of the Canadian Bill of Rights
is also alleged. As a result of the constitutional challenge, the Canadian Free Speech League, the Canadian Association for Free Expression
, the Attorney General of Canada, The Canadian Jewish Congress
, B'nai Brith Canada and the Simon Wiesenthal Centre have all obtained "Interested Party Status" in the case.
On September 2, 2009, Hadjis found Section 13 of the Canada Human Rights Act unconstitutional, and refused to impose a penalty on Lemire. However, as Hadjis is not a judge and the tribunal is not a court, his decision does not carry sufficient weight to strike down the section as ultra vires. As a result, the ruling is not binding beyond the Lemire case.
Two previous decisions of the CHRT (first by a 2-member panel, and later by Chair Grant Sinclair) considered the same challenges to the amendments by the same respondents in Lemire's case - Paul Fromm
in #2 and Douglas Christie / Barbara Kulaszka
(and Lemire having applied and been rejected as an intervenor) in #1 - and found them constitutional.
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
white supremacist
White supremacy
White supremacy is the belief, and promotion of the belief, that white people are superior to people of other racial backgrounds. The term is sometimes used specifically to describe a political ideology that advocates the social and political dominance by whites.White supremacy, as with racial...
movement. He works closely with leader Paul Fromm, and is the webmaster of the Hamilton, Ontario
Hamilton, Ontario
Hamilton is a port city in the Canadian province of Ontario. Conceived by George Hamilton when he purchased the Durand farm shortly after the War of 1812, Hamilton has become the centre of a densely populated and industrialized region at the west end of Lake Ontario known as the Golden Horseshoe...
-based Freedom-Site which he began in 1996. He has been called a "bigot" by Jonathan Kay of the National Post
National Post
The National Post is a Canadian English-language national newspaper based in Don Mills, a district of Toronto. The paper is owned by Postmedia Network Inc. and is published Mondays through Saturdays...
. Formerly of Toronto and now living in Hamilton, Lemire was the last president of the often violent Heritage Front
Heritage Front
The Heritage Front was a Canadian neo-Nazi white supremacist organization founded in 1989 and disbanded around 2005.The Heritage Front maintained a telephone message line with a different editorial each day. The voice on the hotline was Gary Schipper...
organization from January 1, 2001 until the organization folded around 2005.
Early career
In 1997, Lemire ran for school trustee in Toronto Public School Ward P17, but lost after receiving only 2,503 votes (or 12% of the total). In the mid-1990s he was a Canadian Armed Forces reservistCanadian Forces Primary Reserve
The Primary Reserve is a reserve force of the Canadian Forces. It is the largest of the four sub-components of the CF reserves; those being the Primary Reserve, the Supplementary Reserve, the Canadian Rangers, and the Cadet Organizations Administration and Training Service .The reserve force is...
. In their 1997 Annual Audit of Antisemitic Incidents, B'nai Brith Canada wrote, "Marc Lemire, webmaster of the Freedom-Site that hosts the websites of several of Canada’s most virulent antisemitic organizations such as the Heritage Front, The Canadian Patriots Network and the Citizens for Foreign Aid Reform
Citizens for Foreign Aid Reform
Citizens for Foreign Aid Reform is one of a number of groups run by neo-Nazi leader Paul Fromm. It was founded in 1976 by Fromm after he had left the white supremacist Western Guard organization. C-FAR became closely linked to Canadian Association for Free Expression , another one of Fromm's...
". In 1998, the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation called The Canadian Patriots Network a "hate website".
Lemire's involvement with Wolfgang Droege
Wolfgang Droege
Wolfgang Walter Droege was a Canadian white supremacist, neo-Nazi and founding leader of the Heritage Front.-Early life:...
and the neo-Nazi Heritage Front
Heritage Front
The Heritage Front was a Canadian neo-Nazi white supremacist organization founded in 1989 and disbanded around 2005.The Heritage Front maintained a telephone message line with a different editorial each day. The voice on the hotline was Gary Schipper...
group began while he was a teenager in the early 1990s. When the Heritage Front fell into crisis around 1993, he attempted independent projects on the far right, such as his Canadian Patriots Network before embarking in his online activities. He resumed his activity with the Heritage Front within a few years, and according to the Heritage Front website, Lemire helped organize a Heritage Front flyer campaign in 2001. The flyers were titled in part Immigration can kill you, and claimed that there was a connection between immigration and an outbreak of tuberculosis.
Lemire was briefly a member of the Canadian Alliance
Canadian Alliance
The Canadian Alliance , formally the Canadian Reform Conservative Alliance , was a Canadian conservative political party that existed from 2000 to 2003. The party was the successor to the Reform Party of Canada and inherited its position as the Official Opposition in the House of Commons and held...
, a mainstream conservative
Conservatism
Conservatism is a political and social philosophy that promotes the maintenance of traditional institutions and supports, at the most, minimal and gradual change in society. Some conservatives seek to preserve things as they are, emphasizing stability and continuity, while others oppose modernism...
Canadian party — along with several other far-right figures, such as Paul Fromm, Doug Christie
Doug Christie (lawyer)
Douglas Hewson "Doug" Christie, Jr. is a Canadian lawyer and far-right political activist based in Victoria, British Columbia.-Career:...
and Doug Collins
Doug Collins (journalist)
Doug Collins was a British-born Canadian journalist. He was also a figure of Canada's far-right and a Holocaust denier.-Military service:At the start of World War II he joined the British Army...
— until late 2000 when, according to The Report newsmagazine, they were all expelled from the party.
Legal and human rights issues
In August 2006, a Canadian Human Rights TribunalCanadian Human Rights Tribunal
The Canadian Human Rights Tribunal is an administrative tribunal established in 1977 by the Canadian Human Rights Act. It is directly funded by the Parliament of Canada and is independent of the Canadian Human Rights Commission which refers cases to it for adjudication under the Act.The Tribunal...
found that postings by Craig Harrison on the Freedom-Site forum (an interactive message forum on Lemire's website) contained violations of Section 13 of the Canadian Human Rights Act. No liability was found against Lemire, although the Tribunal did issue a decision that "compelled" Lemire to provide evidence during the hearing. A total of eight people in Canada viewed the material.
A complaint was also laid against Lemire for allegedly "communicating and/or causing to be communicated" messages in violation of section 13 of the Canadian Human Rights Act
Canadian Human Rights Act
The Canadian Human Rights Act is a statute originally passed by the Parliament of Canada in 1977 with the express goal of extending the law to ensure equal opportunity to individuals who may be victims of discriminatory practices based on a set prohibited grounds such as gender, disability, or...
. Hearings before the Canadian Human Rights Tribunal began February 2007.
On November 25, 2005, Lemire filed a Notice of Constitutional Question with every Attorney General
Attorney General
In most common law jurisdictions, the attorney general, or attorney-general, is the main legal advisor to the government, and in some jurisdictions he or she may also have executive responsibility for law enforcement or responsibility for public prosecutions.The term is used to refer to any person...
in Canada, against the Canadian Human Rights Act
Canadian Human Rights Act
The Canadian Human Rights Act is a statute originally passed by the Parliament of Canada in 1977 with the express goal of extending the law to ensure equal opportunity to individuals who may be victims of discriminatory practices based on a set prohibited grounds such as gender, disability, or...
, in which he challenged the constitutionality of sections 13 (Internet hate) and 54(1)(1.1) (Fines) of the Canadian Human Rights Act
Canadian Human Rights Act
The Canadian Human Rights Act is a statute originally passed by the Parliament of Canada in 1977 with the express goal of extending the law to ensure equal opportunity to individuals who may be victims of discriminatory practices based on a set prohibited grounds such as gender, disability, or...
. Specifically he argued that they are in violation of ss. 2(a) and (b), 7, 26 and 31 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms
Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms
The Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms is a bill of rights entrenched in the Constitution of Canada. It forms the first part of the Constitution Act, 1982...
. A violation of ss. 1(d) and (f) of the Canadian Bill of Rights
Canadian Bill of Rights
The Canadian Bill of Rights is a federal statute and bill of rights enacted by Prime Minister John Diefenbaker's government on August 10, 1960. It provides Canadians with certain quasi-constitutional rights in relation to other federal statutes...
is also alleged. As a result of the constitutional challenge, the Canadian Free Speech League, the Canadian Association for Free Expression
Canadian Association for Free Expression
The Canadian Association for Free Expression is a political organization based in Canada that campaigns for free speech. It is often accused of having ties to the racist far-right....
, the Attorney General of Canada, The Canadian Jewish Congress
Canadian Jewish Congress
The Canadian Jewish Congress was one of the main lobby groups for the Jewish community in the country, although it often competed with the more conservative B'nai Brith Canada in that regard. At its dissolution, the president of the CJC was Mark Freiman. Its past co-presidents were Sylvain Abitbol...
, B'nai Brith Canada and the Simon Wiesenthal Centre have all obtained "Interested Party Status" in the case.
On September 2, 2009, Hadjis found Section 13 of the Canada Human Rights Act unconstitutional, and refused to impose a penalty on Lemire. However, as Hadjis is not a judge and the tribunal is not a court, his decision does not carry sufficient weight to strike down the section as ultra vires. As a result, the ruling is not binding beyond the Lemire case.
Two previous decisions of the CHRT (first by a 2-member panel, and later by Chair Grant Sinclair) considered the same challenges to the amendments by the same respondents in Lemire's case - Paul Fromm
Paul Fromm
Frederick Paul Fromm , known as Paul Fromm, is a Canadian neo-Nazi and Holocaust denier, based in Port Credit, Ontario. He hosts a radio show on the Stormfront web site and has ties to former Ku Klux Klan members David Duke and Don Black...
in #2 and Douglas Christie / Barbara Kulaszka
Barbara Kulaszka
Barbara Kulaszka is a Canadian lawyer known especially for her role in defending far-right figures.Kulaszka has been a member of the Law Society of Upper Canada since 1980 and has practiced law since 1987. She acted with Doug Christie as co-counsel to Holocaust denier Ernst Zündel in the 1980s and...
(and Lemire having applied and been rejected as an intervenor) in #1 - and found them constitutional.