C-254 (45-1) - An Act to amend the Criminal Code (promotion of hatred against Indigenous peoples)
Chamber
commons
Stage
1st Reading
Introduced
Oct 31, 2025
Progress
This bill makes it a criminal offence to publicly condone, deny, or downplay the Indian residential school system.
Key Changes
- Creates a new Criminal Code offence for publicly condoning, denying, downplaying, justifying, or misrepresenting facts about the Indian residential school system
- Sets a maximum penalty of two years imprisonment for an indictable version of the offence
- Provides a summary conviction option for less serious cases
- Establishes four legal defences: truth, good-faith religious opinion, public interest belief, and good-faith intent to reduce hatred
- Requires the consent of the Attorney General before any prosecution under this new offence can proceed
- Defines 'Indigenous peoples' using the existing constitutional definition from subsection 35(2) of the Constitution Act, 1982
Gotchas
- The Attorney General must consent before any prosecution can begin, which acts as a gatekeeping mechanism to prevent frivolous or politically motivated charges
- A good-faith religious opinion defence is included, which could be relevant given that many residential schools were operated by religious institutions
- The 'public interest' defence allows statements believed in good faith to be true and relevant to public discussion, which may create ambiguity about what qualifies as protected speech
- The bill includes a coordinating amendment to align with Bill C-9 (the Combatting Hate Act) if that bill also receives royal assent, ensuring the two laws work together consistently
- The offence applies only to statements made outside of private conversation, meaning the same statements made privately would not be criminal
Who's Affected
- Indigenous peoples in Canada, particularly residential school survivors and their families
- Individuals who make public statements about the residential school system
- Media organizations and journalists reporting on residential schools
- Academics, researchers, and educators discussing residential school history
- Religious organizations, given the historical role of churches in running residential schools
Vibes
0 responses
Gotchas
- The Attorney General must consent before any prosecution can begin, which acts as a gatekeeping mechanism to prevent frivolous or politically motivated charges
- A good-faith religious opinion defence is included, which could be relevant given that many residential schools were operated by religious institutions
- The 'public interest' defence allows statements believed in good faith to be true and relevant to public discussion, which may create ambiguity about what qualifies as protected speech
- The bill includes a coordinating amendment to align with Bill C-9 (the Combatting Hate Act) if that bill also receives royal assent, ensuring the two laws work together consistently
- The offence applies only to statements made outside of private conversation, meaning the same statements made privately would not be criminal
Summary
Bill C-254 amends the Criminal Code to create a new hate speech offence specifically targeting statements that promote hatred against Indigenous peoples by condoning, denying, downplaying, justifying, or misrepresenting facts about the Indian residential school system in Canada. The offence applies to public statements — it does not cover private conversations. Someone convicted under this new offence could face up to two years in prison if charged by indictment, or a lesser penalty if charged by summary conviction. The bill was introduced by MP Leah Gazan on October 31, 2025, as a private member's bill. The bill was introduced in the context of ongoing public debate about residential school denialism in Canada, where some individuals have publicly disputed the documented harms and deaths associated with the residential school system. It aims to treat such denialism as a form of hate promotion against Indigenous peoples.
Automatically generated from bill text using Claude
Vibes
0 responses