ACTIVIST BARRED FROM DISTRIBUTING "HATEFUL" MATERIALS
Social activist Bill Whatcott says he will appeal a ruling by the Saskatchewan Human Rights Tribunal that found him guilty of distributing flyers found to expose homosexuals to hatred and ridicule, the Saskatoon Star-Phoenix reported Saturday.
The tribunal decided that the accused had demonstrated "a clear pattern or practise of disregard for protected rights."
Whatcott was ordered to compensate the four complainants in the case a total of $17,500. He was also forbidden from distributing the flyers "or any similar material which promotes hatred against individuals because of their sexual orientation."
The flyers, which Whatcott had placed in mailboxes between September 2001 and April 2002, reportedly referred to homosexuals as "sodomites."
"I believe homosexuality activity is a sin," Whatcott, who professes to be a Christian, told the Star-Phoenix. "I really believe that. And to give me a $17,500 fine and say I can't say that is quite frankly garbage and is not something I am going to abide by."
Whatcott says he will appeal the decision on grounds that it tramples on his Charter-protected rights to freedom of _expression and freedom of religion.
Whatcott is among a growing list of Christians who have been found guilty by human rights bodies and the courts of actions and statements deemed to be discriminatory of homosexuals.
They include Quesnel, B.C., teacher-counsellor Chris Kempling, Toronto printer Scott Brockie, a Catholic high school in Durham, Ontario, that refused to allow student Marc Hall bring his male date to a prom, and the owners of a family-run bed-and-breakfast in Prince Edward Island who decided to go out of business rather than be forced to allow same-sex couples to stay in their home.
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