Quote:
Originally Posted by BlackEleven
The issue here isn't freedom of expression, its trespassing. The protesters were asked to leave private property, they did not, so they are being charged.
If you invited me over to your home, and I started yelling at your other guests and showing them a bunch of photos that you found offensive, you could ask me to leave. If I refused, you could call the cops to remove me from your property, and I could get a trespassing charge. Now, would my right to free speech have been violated? Or would I have violated your rights by refusing to leave your property when asked?
I would agree with you 100% if they were protesting on public property, but the fact is that they were not. The University is well within its rights here.
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This is an abrupt about face from the University's past actions regarding the group's protest. In the past, people walking past were given fair warning as well as fair advisement that the protests were protected under the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms.
Furthermore, Canadian jurisprudence and Charter case precedence clearly show that the Charter is expected to reside not only in the public sphere, but also in the private sphere.
The University is private property, in title only, for administrative purposes. In reality, it is a publicly funded institution which is supposed to be a free ground for the exchange of ideas.
This is politics. Pure and simple. The Pro-Life group became to much of a controversy so the University decided to take the easy way out.