Religious Freedom in Canada

The Constitution provides for freedom of religion and religious practice, and Canadian government and society generally respect these rights and promote religious tolerance. The Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms became part of the Constitution in 1982 and explicitly guarantees religious freedom, while provincial human rights codes prohibit religious discrimination in commerce, employment, and accommodation. Court cases have also established precedents for freedoms for religious speech, holiday observance, and religious dress, as well as for reasonable limits on religious freedom to protect civic order. Education is one of the more problematic areas for religious freedom. The United Nations Human Rights Commission holds Ontario in violation of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights for funding only Catholic schools. In Quebec, evangelical Christian schools are required to teach evolution and sex education regardless of religious objections. Quebec, a province with a culture rooted in Roman Catholicism and French identity, has long considered secession from Canada, the government of which has traditionally been dominated by Anglicized Protestants. A 1995 referendum on Québécois independence failed by only 1%, after which the federal government raised the bar for secession but recognized Quebec as a distinct “nation within a united Canada.” Muslims, around 2% of the population, sometimes face societal discrimination engendered in part by planned – but foiled – radical Islamist terrorist plots uncovered in 2006 and 2010. Attempts in 2004 and 2005 to establish Sharia tribunals in Ontario in accordance with a statute permitting the use of religious law in civil arbitrations were thwarted by popular opposition, including from some Muslim organizations.