You can’t legally play road hockey on Celebration Square or on the streets of Mississauga, but you can hold a ceremony to mourn the death of the mastermind of the Oct. 7, 2023 slaughter of more than 1,200 Jews.
This is not an exaggeration.
In one of those strange anomalies and double standards of woke Canada, the City of Mississauga has now made that clear in a news release posted to X Sunday.
“Under the Charter of Rights and freedoms, groups have the right under the freedom of expression and peaceful assembly” and “the city will not interfere with a peaceful vigil as long as all laws and city bylaws are adhered to.”
As a result, a planned martyr event to honour Yahya Sinwar — the Hamas leader killed by Israeli forces last month — is on at Mississauga City Hall’s Celebration Square on Nov. 26.
As covered in my Saturday column, a group — using poppies in their invitation poster — planned a gathering “commemorating 40 days after the martyrdom of the leaders of the resistance fighting for Palestinian freedom” on “Tuesday Nov. 26 at 6 p.m., at 300 City Centre Dr.” Organizers used three red poppies in their poster with the “Lest We Forget” above a picture of the Hamas leader killed in Gaza last month.
“Vigil for Resistance Leaders – bring your candles and pictures.”
There was no mention of the horrors this man or Hamas caused, brutally slaying innocent Israelis on Oct. 7 2023 and taking 250 hostages – of which more than 100 remain captive or their whereabouts is unknown. Every death in Gaza since that attack is a result of this man’s evil barbaric assault on a music festival and nearby villages.
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There have been reports of people publicly grieving his death in Gaza. But in Mississauga?
“As you know, public demonstrations of a peaceful and respectful nature are not subject to permits or permissions,” Mississauga Mayor Carolyn Parrish told The Toronto Sun. “We can’t stop one group and not another.”
While true on paper, everybody knows if the KKK were to hold a rally honouring the death of their leader, it would not be permitted to happen any more than if a bunch of Nazis decided to mark Hitler’s birthday.
Hamas is not any different and is a banned terror group in Canada. Celebrating them is obscene — and hurtful to the families of their victims.
While organizers use Canada’s laws to hold this, it’s not lost on people how fast Don Cherry was cancelled for saying “you people” should wear poppies, but there’s silence on supporting a mass murderer like Sinwar.
While the Royal Canadian Legion has sent a cease-and-desist letter on using their trademarked poppy in promoting this, Mississauga has sent out a different message.
And Parrish, who acknowledges using the poppy was a “mistake,” is hearing concerns from constituents on social media.
“Why is this happening in Mississauga?” wrote Karen Woods on X. “Why is my city going to be used to valorize a terrorist.”
Sandrine on X added: “Holding a vigil for a terrorist leader, linked to an organization like Hamas, is deeply troubling and should not be permitted in a public space. While the space may be public, there should be rules in place to prevent the promotion of terrorism or extremist ideologies.”
Parrish replied: “That would be called censorship, preferential treatment, being judgmental — the stifling of freedom of speech which is something most Canadians value.”
Parrish also posted to X “freedom of expression is protected by legislation in Canada. Public spaces such as those around City Hall are open to all members of the public. When free speech descends into hate speech or threats, the police will lay charges as they did in Brampton last weekend.”
Peel Regional Police laid numerous charges in two incidents which saw battles between Khalistan separatist supporters and Hindu Canadians — some even carried swords and machetes.
Parrish told the Sun there will be a police presence at this event and laws must be followed.
“Of course, police will monitor. They always do. They try to be non-invasive but have back up at the ready for all such demonstrations, vigils and marches,” said the mayor. “Except for the recent flare up between the Hindus and Khalistan supporters in Brampton and Malton, we have consistently had very peaceful activities around City Centre.”
There are laws that can be applied if things cross over into alleged hate crimes.
While the organizers rely on Canada’s Charter freedoms for this event, it’s not lost on Canadians that in 2022, the Trudeau government invoked the Emergencies Act to clear out protesting truckers in Ottawa. If some kids decided to play street hockey at the square during this Sinwar Martyr vigil, they would be violating the rules.
Mississauga’s website says while the city is reviewing its bylaws, you can’t play sports on the roadways.
“The current regulations are enforced on a complaint basis,” says the city. “Most incidents, especially those related to playing sports on the roadway, are resolved by compliance through education.”
Perhaps someone in authority could educate the organizers that while their event, thanks to the Charter, is technically legal, perhaps Celebration Square is not the appropriate place for their martyr celebration.