Under the guidance of a new mandate by the Ford government, universities in Ontario have had to implement new free-speech policies.
It’s a new rule that the government announced last summer, stating that all publicly funded colleges and universities must develop and implement a free speech policy by January 1.
Emmett Macfarlane is a political science professor at the University of Waterloo he tells Kitchener Today with Brian Bourke on 570 NEWS that there isn’t really a major free-speech problem to solve at Canadian universities.
“What we really have seen is a handful of controversies that have really flared up and have gotten a lot of media attention, and while these controversies have been very concerning, for the most part — the day-to-day activities of the universities have very few limits on the freedom of expression and students are engaged in the discussion of all sorts of issues.”
He says that the new law to ensure fair, free-speech on campus may not have been necessary.
Staff – KitchenerToday – January 9, 2019.