Freedom of Peaceful Assembly
s. 2 Everyone has the following fundamental freedoms:
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(c) freedom of peaceful assembly
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Section 2(c) of the Charter protects your freedom to meet and gather as part of a committee, collective, or as a group of workers.
Section 2(c) issues do not arise often. It is closely aligned with section 2(b)—freedom of expression—as it protects a lawful means of expression. It is also closely associated with section 2(d) -- as it protects the right to association.
Section 2(c) and the Occupy Movement
During the Occupy movement in 2011, courts across Canada dealt with the issue of “tent cities” occupying public parks and whether they could lawfully be ejected. (see, for example: City of Vancouver v O’Flynn-Magee, 2011 BCSC 1647 at 3). Courts generally found that government action to disband the encampments directly interfered with the occupiers’ rights to peaceful assembly (see, for example: Batty v City of Toronto, 2011 ONSC 6862 at 75).
However, the ejection ultimately held to be a reasonable and justifiable limitation of these rights.
If you think your right to peaceful assembly has been breached, click here to determine if that breach was unreasonable and unjustifiable.