Free speech and its limits have once again been drawn into question following a confrontation between a Calgary police officer and members of a controversial pro-life group over the weekend.
Demonstrators with the Canadian Centre for Bioethical Reform ‘ carrying their infamously graphic images of what they claim are aborted fetuses ‘ were in the midst of a protest near Macleod Trail and Chinook Centre on Saturday when a uniformed officer approached and demanded the signs be removed.
“You guys being here protesting is not the problem, it’s the signs that are the problem,” the officer says in a video of the incident.
When members of the centre refused to comply, the officer seized the materials, temporarily detained group leader Francisco Gomez and issued him a ticket.
“It was a bit of a shock to me,” said Gomez during an interview Wednesday. “We are just law-abiding citizens. I am left questioning whether officers understand what our legal rights are.”
Calgary police spokesperson Kevin Brookwell could not speak to the specific event but said the controversial group and others that are similar force police to weigh the merits of both free speech and public decency.
“We inform them of the threshold ‘ this is what you can do and this is what you can’t do ‘ and we make it clear if they cross that threshold there will be consequences,” he said.
“It’s always on a case-by-case basis and you are always juggling that Charter of Rights and Freedoms.”
Janet Keeping with the locally based Sheldon Chumir Foundation for Ethics in Leadership deemed the situation “worrying,”
“The fear is the police overreacted,” said Keeping, who noted she doesn’t agree with the centre’s message but defends their right to express it.
“If the protesters are not actually interfering with people’s everyday affairs, it’s got to be really extreme to warrant interference from law enforcement.”
Gomez says he’s pleaded not guilty and plans to fight the ticket in court if necessary.
