REACTING to a report commissioned by the Canadian Race Relations Foundation (CRRF) and conducted by Nanos Research, the Canadian Coalition to Combat Online Hate – made up of many organizations from a diverse array of communities concerned with the rise of hatred disseminated on the Internet – said in a statement, through one of its members, the Rev. Jeff Rock of the Metropolitan Community Church: “We came together as a Coalition of groups representing different marginalized communities building inter-movement solidarity with one purpose: to ensure everyone has equal protection – and all Canadians are free from online hate. We are grateful to see that our objective is shared by the vast majority of Canadians and look forward to concrete action.”
The statement pointed out that the report found that:
* 58% of Canadians, regardless of their age, race, or region, say online hatred is a serious threat
* 79% of respondents support introducing legislation to combat serious forms of harmful online content
* 76% of Canadians support making social media platforms legally responsible for the moderation of hateful and extremist content before it can do harm;
* 75% of Canadians support strengthening the Canada Human Rights Act.
The statement added: “In short, the results of the survey demonstrate what the Coalition has long known: that, when it comes to online hate, Canadians want action.
“We urge the government to listen to Canadians and to targeted communities and introduce effective legislation swiftly that will protect Canadians from online hate while ensuring that Canadians’ freedom of expression is protected.”