Motion 103, also known as M-103, was a non-binding

motion In physics, motion is when an object changes its position with respect to a reference point in a given time. Motion is mathematically described in terms of displacement, distance, velocity, acceleration, speed, and frame of reference to an o ...

in the

42nd Canadian Parliament The 42nd Canadian Parliament was in session from December 3, 2015, to September 11, 2019, with the membership of its lower chamber, the House of Commons of Canada, having been determined by the results of the 2015 federal election held on Octob ...

stating that the members of the

House of Commons The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the Bicameralism, bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of ...

called on the

Government of Canada The Government of Canada (), formally His Majesty's Government (), is the body responsible for the federation, federal administration of Canada. The term ''Government of Canada'' refers specifically to the executive, which includes Minister of t ...

to condemn

Islamophobia in Canada Islamophobia in Canada refers to a set of discourses, behaviours and structures which express feelings of anxiety, fear, hostility and rejection towards Islam or Islam in Canada, Muslims in Canada. Particularly since the September 11 attacks i ...

. It also called on the Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage to carry out a study on how racism and religious discrimination can be reduced and collect data on hate crimes. The motion was introduced by

Iqra Khalid Iqra Khalid (born November 20, 1985) is a Canadian politician who was elected to represent the riding of Mississauga—Erin Mills in the House of Commons of Canada in the 2015 federal election. Early life and education Khalid was born in Pa ...

, the Liberal MP representing Mississauga—Erin Mills. The motion passed by a vote of 201–91 on March 23, 2017. The debate surrounding the motion was characterized as "deeply divisive", especially within the Official Opposition

Conservative Party of Canada The Conservative Party of Canada (CPC; , ), sometimes referred to as the Tories, is a Government of Canada, federal List of political parties in Canada, political party in Canada. It was formed in 2003 by the merger of the two main Right-wing ...

which was in the midst of a leadership election.huffingtonpost.ca: "M-103: Anti-Islamophobia Motion Easily Passes House Of Commons"
23 Mar 2017

Background

, a

Liberal Party The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left. For example, while the political systems ...

member of parliament, presented Motion 103 in the House of Commons on December 5, 2016.

Frank Baylis Frank Baylis (born November 15, 1962) is a Canadian businessman and politician, who was elected to represent the riding of Pierrefonds-Dollard in the House of Commons of Canada in the 2015 federal election. He did not run for re-election in ...

, another Liberal Party member of parliament, seconded the motion. The motion stemmed in part from e-petition E-411, which was exclusively about Islamophobia.torontosun.com: "M-103 passes and now the Islamophobia study begins"
23 Mar 2017 The motion initially did not receive much attention. Then on January 27, six Muslims were killed in Quebec city and the motion became a priority for the Liberal government. Motion 103 was debated on February 15, 2017. The same day,

Mélanie Joly Mélanie Joly (; born January 16, 1979) is a Canadian politician and lawyer who has been serving as the Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry, Minister of Industry, Registrar General of Canada, and Minister responsible for the Economic D ...

, the

Minister of Canadian Heritage The Minister of Canadian Identity and Culture is the minister of the Crown who heads Department of Canadian Heritage, Canadian Heritage, the department of the Government of Canada responsible for Canadian culture, culture, Media in Canada, medi ...

, stated that the Liberal Party caucus was to support Motion 103. Some incorrectly refer to it as a "bill or a law, out of confusion or deliberate attempts to spread misinformation". M-103 is a private member's motion, which is a "proposal moved by an MP to draw attention to an issue considered urgent or of public interest", and is not equivalent to a law.

Motion's text

Motion 103 calls on the government to "condemn

Islamophobia Islamophobia is the irrational fear of, hostility towards, or hatred against the religion of Islam or Muslims in general. Islamophobia is primarily a form of religious or cultural bigotry; and people who harbour such sentiments often stereot ...

and all forms of systemic racism and religious discrimination", asks the government to "recognize the need to quell the increasing public climate of hate and fear", and request for the "Commons heritage committee to study how the government could develop a government-wide approach to reducing or eliminating systemic racism and religious discrimination, including Islamophobia, and collect data to provide context for hate crime reports and to conduct needs assessments for impacted communities. Findings are to be presented within eight months." Khalid has been "unwilling to entertain any compromise on the specific wording" of Motion 103. The exact text reads:

Debate

Singling out Muslims

Motion 103 has been accused of "singling out Muslims for special treatment", by condemning only

by name and not explicitly mentioning other religious groups. This argument was made by Pierre Lemieux,

Kellie Leitch Dr. Khristinn Kellie Leitch (born July 30, 1970) is a Canadian surgeon and former politician who served as the Member of Parliament for the riding of Simcoe—Grey from 2011 to 2019 as a member of the Conservative Party. She was first elect ...

and two main Jewish organizations CIJA and B'nai B'rith Canada. Several previous motions in the House of Commons have singled out individual religions in a similar manner (for example, asking MPs to condemn anti-Semitism). Conservative MP

Michael Chong Michael David Chong (born November 22, 1971) is a Canadian politician who has represented the Ontario riding of Wellington—Halton Hills in the House of Commons since 2004. A member of the Conservative Party, he served in the cabinet of Pr ...

pointed out that the

had previously passed motions that denounced hatred against Jews (on February 22, 2016),

Yazidis Yazidis, also spelled Yezidis (; ), are a Kurdish languages, Kurdish-speaking Endogamy, endogamous religious group indigenous to Kurdistan, a geographical region in Western Asia that includes parts of Iraq, Syria, Turkey, and Iran. The major ...

(on October 25, 2016) and

Coptic Christians Copts (; ) are a Christian ethnoreligious group native to Northeast Africa who have primarily inhabited the area of modern Egypt since antiquity. They are, like the broader Egyptian population, descended from the ancient Egyptians. Copts p ...

(on October 17, 2011).

Freedom of speech

Others have accused M-103 of going against free speech and leading to "blasphemy laws". This was argued by Conservative MP

Brad Trost Bradley Ryan Trost (born May 15, 1974) is a former Canadian politician who served as a Conservative Member of Parliament in the House of Commons of Canada, representing the ridings of Saskatoon—Humboldt from 2004 to 2015 and Saskatoon—Un ...

and evangelical Christian activist Charles McVety. Interim Conservative leader

Rona Ambrose Ronalee Ambrose Veitch ( , Name at birth, née Chapchuk; born March 15, 1969) is a former Canadian politician who served as Leader of the Official Opposition (Canada), leader of the Official Opposition and Interim leader (Canada), interim Leade ...

repudiated such claims and said: "To be clear, this is not a 'bill' nor a 'law'. It does not 'introduce

Sharia law Sharia, Sharī'ah, Shari'a, or Shariah () is a body of religious law that forms a part of the Islamic tradition based on scriptures of Islam, particularly the Qur'an and hadith. In Islamic terminology ''sharīʿah'' refers to immutable, inta ...

' as some people have suggested nor would it 'ban freedom of speech'." The

Canadian Civil Liberties Association The Canadian Civil Liberties Association (CCLA; ) is a nonprofit organization in Canada devoted to the defence of civil liberties and constitutional rights.Dominique ClementCase Study: Canadian Civil Liberties Association Page accessed Feb 13, 20 ...

also said that M-103 does not restrict free speech in any way.

Hate crimes against Canadian Muslims

An argument in support of the motion is that it addresses a "pressing issue".

Statistics Canada Statistics Canada (StatCan; ), formed in 1971, is the agency of the Government of Canada commissioned with producing statistics to help better understand Canada, its population, resources, economy, society, and culture. It is headquartered in ...

data indicated that hate crimes against Muslims more than doubled in the three-year period between 2013 and 2016. Canadians indicated the urgency of addressing this issue by signing a petition (with 70,000 signatures) condemning Islamophobia. Then in January 2017, 6 Muslims were killed in a mass shooting at a Quebec City mosque. Iqra Khalid said that the death threats she has received, and the threats of violence that Canadian mosques have received, only serve to highlight how important it is for Parliament to condemn Islamophobia.

Use of term Islamophobia

Rona Ambrose and Lisa Raitt criticized the motion for its use of the term Islamophobia, which they described as "controversial". Many Conservative MPs said that the Liberals needed to define Islamophobia. On February 15, Iqra Khalid stated that the definition of Islamophobia is "the irrational hate of Muslims that leads to discrimination". Liberal Heritage Minister

Melanie Joly Melanie is a feminine given name derived from the Greek μελανία (melania), "blackness" and that from μέλας (melas), meaning "dark".

Protests

The M-103 debate provoked protests and counter-protests. On February 16,

Rebel Media ''Rebel News'' (also known as ''The Rebel Media'' and ''The Rebel'') is a Canadian far-right political and social commentary media website operated by Rebel News Network Ltd. It has been described as a "global platform" for the Islamophobia, a ...

organized an anti-M103 rally at

Canada Christian College Canada Christian College and School of Graduate Theological Studies, also known as Canada Christian College, is a private evangelical Bible college in Whitby, Ontario, Canada. , over 6,500 people have graduated from Canada Christian College. Hi ...

. Demonstrations organized by the Canadian Coalition for Concerned Citizens against M-103 were held on March 4, 2017 in several cities across Canada. In

Montreal Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...

Quebec City Quebec City is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Quebec. As of July 2021, the city had a population of 549,459, and the Census Metropolitan Area (including surrounding communities) had a populati ...

, and

Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

demonstrations were attended by hundreds, while others in cities like

Saskatoon Saskatoon () is the largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Saskatchewan. It straddles a bend in the South Saskatchewan River in the central region of the province. It is located along the Trans-Canada Hig ...

, and

London, Ontario London is a city in southwestern Ontario, Canada, along the Quebec City–Windsor Corridor. The city had a population of 422,324 according to the 2021 Canadian census. London is at the confluence of the Thames River (Ontario), Thames River and N ...

were smaller. Stephen Garvey, leader of the newly formed nationalist National Advancement Party of Canada, organized protests against M-103 in

Calgary Calgary () is a major city in the Canadian province of Alberta. As of 2021, the city proper had a population of 1,306,784 and a metropolitan population of 1,481,806 making it the third-largest city and fifth-largest metropolitan area in C ...

. Many of these demonstrations included contingents from

far-right Far-right politics, often termed right-wing extremism, encompasses a range of ideologies that are marked by ultraconservatism, authoritarianism, ultranationalism, and nativism. This political spectrum situates itself on the far end of the ...

groups including

La Meute La Meute (, "The Pack") is a Québécois nationalist pressure group and identitarian movement fighting against illegal immigration and radical Islam. The group was founded in September 2015 in Quebec by two former Canadian Armed Forces members, ...

, Pegida, and the

Soldiers of Odin Soldiers of Odin (SOO; ) is an anti-immigrant group which was founded in Kemi, Finland, in October 2015. The group was established in response to the thousands of migrants who were arriving in Finland amidst the European migrant crisis. They ca ...

Harassment of Khalid

Khalid received over 50,000 emails, many of them described as "vicious, cruel and hateful", some of which she read aloud during the debate on M-103.

Parliamentary history

M-103 passed 201-91 in March 2017, with support from the Liberals and NDP. Some MPs, including Trudeau, were not present for the vote. All of the Conservative Party leadership candidates sitting in the House of Commons, with the exception of

, announced their opposition to Motion 103. Prior to that, on February 16, 2017, David Anderson, a

Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy and ideology that seeks to promote and preserve traditional institutions, customs, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civiliza ...

member of parliament, had tabled an alternative motion. The difference in the motions is that Anderson's motion doesn't contain the word "Islamophobia" and asks the House of Commons to "condemn all forms of systemic racism, religious intolerance, and discrimination of Muslims, Jews, Christians, Sikhs, Hindus, and other religious communities." Anderson's motion was defeated 165–126. The Conservative Party,

Bloc Québécois The Bloc Québécois (, , BQ) is a centre-left politics, centre-left and list of federal political parties in Canada, federal political party in Canada devoted to Quebec nationalism, Quebecois nationalism, social democracy, and the promotion o ...

New Democratic Party The New Democratic Party (NDP; , ) is a federal political party in Canada. Widely described as social democratic,The party is widely described as social democratic: * * * * * * * * * * * * * The Editors of ''Encyclopædia Britann ...

, and

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voted for the motion and the Liberal Party voted against the motion. In response to the M-103 debate, Ontario Liberal MPP Nathalie Des Rosiers introduced a similar motion in the

Legislative Assembly of Ontario The Legislative Assembly of Ontario (OLA; ) is the legislative chamber of the Canadian province of Ontario. Its elected members are known as Members of Provincial Parliament (MPPs). Bills passed by the Legislative Assembly are given royal as ...

that called for the condemnation of Islamophobia. Des Rosiers' motion was supported by both the

Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario The Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario (PC; ), often shortened to the Ontario PC Party, or simply the PCs, colloquially known as the Tories, is a Centre-right politics, centre-right political party in Ontario, Canada. During its uninterr ...

and

Ontario New Democratic Party The Ontario New Democratic Party (NDP; , NPD) is a social democratic political party in Ontario, Canada. The party sits on the centre-left of the political spectrum. It is Ontario’s provincial section of the federal New Democratic Party. The ...

, and was passed with a unanimous vote.

Report

In 2018, a

committee, recommended that January 29 (the day of the

Quebec City mosque shooting The Quebec City mosque shooting () was an attack by a single gunman on the evening of January 29, 2017, at the Islamic Cultural Centre of Quebec City, a mosque in the Sainte-Foy, Quebec City, Sainte-Foy neighbourhood of Quebec City, Canada. S ...

) be recognized as a "national day of remembrance and action on religious discrimination, including Islamophobia." It also recommended developing policies and supporting more research on racism.

References

{{Reflist, 30em

External links

Motion 103 full text and vote details
at

Parliament of Canada The Parliament of Canada () is the Canadian federalism, federal legislature of Canada. The Monarchy of Canada, Crown, along with two chambers: the Senate of Canada, Senate and the House of Commons of Canada, House of Commons, form the Bicameral ...

2017 in Islam Islamophobia in Canada 42nd Canadian Parliament Justin Trudeau controversies Motions (parliamentary procedure) Religion and politics 2017 in Canadian politics

Background

Motion's text

Debate

Singling out Muslims

Freedom of speech

Hate crimes against Canadian Muslims

Use of term Islamophobia

Harassment of Khalid

Parliamentary history

Report

See also

References

External links