Thousands protest anti-Muslim film in Toronto

[rachel1]

Thousands of demonstrators gathered outside the U.S. Embassy in Toronto on Saturday to protest an anti-Islam film that denounces the Prophet Muhammad.

An estimated 1,500 people surrounded the embassy on University Avenue to call on the U.S. government to prosecute the filmmaker, allegedly a Christian Egyptian based out of Los Angeles.

One man at the protest told CP24 that hate speech against Islam or any other religion should not be tolerated.

“Free speech does not give you a right to go and attack someone’s faith,” said a man who only gave his first name, Mohammed. “If anybody is attacking the Jewish faith or the Christian faith, Muslims would be hand in hand with them to denounce it. The same thing applies to the Islamic faith.”

http://toronto.ctvnews.ca/thousands-protest-anti-muslim-film-in-toronto-1.967602#ixzz27QtwkYCf

[riderinthestorm]

1. Oh those Canadians just don't understand our freedoms! Er, that our government doesnt control this

kind of filmmaking! No wait, its because they have been bombed relentlessly by the imperial US and they're filled with rage! No? Okay then its got to be because the US has ruthlessly exploited those Canadians and oppressed them, installing puppet dictators! Not that either? Okay well then its GOT to be they have no access to youtube and so they are only relying upon the heated rhetoric of the frenzied crowd! No? Okay then it must be....


(waiting for the usual litany of excuses so thought I'd just get some out there first)

[Posteritatis]

3. To be fair, Toronto's protest scene in general can get impressively heated

It's far and away one of the most multicultural cities on the planet; pretty much anything controversial anywhere on the planet's going to lead to people in the streets there.

It can be kind of impressive, seeing the sorts of things people wouldn't otherwise have heard of show up in the news because one expat community or another has very much been noticing something elsewhere.

Even if I'm constitutionally obligated to dislike Toronto somewhat because I'm a maritimer, I do think that sort of thing's great. It's neat seeing places get massively interconnected.

[Posteritatis]

2. 1,500 constitutes "thousands" now? Must be the new math.

Also: dude, yes, free speech does give that right, even up here where we don't have church/state separation.

[Bad_Ronald]

4. “Free speech does not give you a right to go and attack someone’s faith,”....

Imagine if that rule applied Christianity? We'd have no DU.