How can the charter of rights and freedoms be changed

Through a series of decisions the courts have recognized rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender Canadians, despite the fact that sexual orientation is not specifically mentioned in the charter itself.

In the Vriend decision , the court read sexual orientation into Alberta's human rights legislation, confirming earlier decisions prohibiting discrimination on those grounds. That decision led the Alberta government to the brink of invoking the notwithstanding clause, but in the end it shied away.

From Vriend, decisions on pensions and the marital rights of same-sex cohabiters, followed by a reference to the Supreme Court on same-sex marriage and the constitutionality of the Civil Marriage Act extended rights and recognition to the LGBT community. Des Rosiers said that through its combination of litigation and activism, this was "a community that did it right.

Through a series of provincial and Supreme Court decisions, the charter gave francophones outside Quebec access to French schools, school boards and even hospitals. Canada now has a generation called "section 23 kids" who were educated in these schools, where numbers warranted. Des Rosiers considers those decisions to have been among the most important to have been given effect by the charter but she also notes that "language politics in Quebec haven't changed that much" by comparison.

The Quebec government famously employed the charter's notwithstanding clause to override a Supreme Court decision on its main language law, Bill , in Some years later, however, it rewrote its language laws to comply with the top court's ruling. Also, an amendment section The charter has imposed on governments a duty to consult aboriginal peoples when resource development and other government changes affect them unduly. The criminal law prohibiting hate speech, which violates the freedom of expression, is an example of a law the government has argued needs to exist to protect Canadians, and the courts have agreed.

Introducing the Charter into our Constitution inevitably led to greater power and responsibilities for the courts. Initially, when the Charter was a new legal tool, the question was how could it be used? A mere two days after the Charter came into force, Combines Investigation officers tried to search the offices of the Edmonton Journal and seize information, relying on an authorization certificate they presented. Southam Inc. The case quickly made its way to the Supreme Court of Canada where the Court agreed that the search violated section 8 of the Charter and was therefore not constitutional.

The decision was also significant because the Court gave an interpretation to the purpose and meaning of the Charter :. Its purpose is to guarantee and to protect, within the limits of reason, the enjoyment of the rights and freedoms it enshrines.

It is intended to constrain governmental action inconsistent with those rights and freedoms; it is not in itself an authorization for governmental action. Even with that purpose in mind, the process of Charter analysis is not straightforward. Deciding when laws violate Charter rights is often a tough task for the courts. It is not surprising then that even within the courts, different conclusions can be reached by the judges. The Hutterians said this law infringed on their religious belief.

On the other hand, two justices found the harm to the rights of the Hutterians was dramatic, and noted that the impact was not on just their belief system but on the life of the community. Point out that the rights and freedoms are organized into categories. Point out that the web only has 6 categories as language rights and minority language education rights are combined. Have partners work together to complete the web by adding examples for each category of rights and freedoms from the Charter.

Students can cut out or copy the examples as well as add examples of their own. Interactive Learning Activities. Scroll to the 2 nd page for English version. Explain that this is the complete, official version of the Charter. Point out the categories of rights and freedoms as well as the signature and date of the Charter. Explain that the Charter is used by the Courts to make decisions. Challenge students to look at real court decisions based on the Charter. Students should come to consensus on which section of the placemat will be presented by which group member.

Ensure that each member has an opportunity to speak. These limitations prompted the call for the adoption of a bill of rights that could be entrenched in the Constitution. As such, the Charter explicitly prohibits discrimination on the basis of colour, religion, sex, age, and physical or mental disability. Since its enactment, the Charter has been interpreted in different ways, allowing the scope of its protections to evolve. This transfer was the subject of intense debate. Some provinces were concerned that the federal government was acting unilaterally.