By Canadian Coalition for Democracies

TORONTO — Toronto residents will demonstrate at the city’s Danish consulate March 11 in support of freedom of expression.

Denmark’s interests around the world have been targeted for attack following the publication of cartoons depicting the Prophet Muhammad in a Danish newspaper.

Nav Purewal, an undergraduate student at the University of Toronto, and Daniel Dale, an undergraduate at York University, organized the rally in response to what Purewal called a “grave affront” to the principles of pluralist democracy.

“In a free society, everybody has the right to free expression without fear of violent retaliation,” Purewal said. “This right is at the very heart of our great nation. And when our democratic brethren are attacked for upholding it, we must stand in solidarity.”

The rally, open to all members of the public, has drawn support from across political and religious lines.

“We’ve received messages of encouragement from conservatives, liberals, Muslims, Hindus, Jews, Sikhs, Christians, you name it,” Dale said. “This isn’t a partisan issue, an issue on which people are automatically divided along religious lines. It’s an issue on which those who cherish the freedom at the heart of Canadian society can unite. On Saturday, I’m sure we’ll see a crowd which reflects the wonderful diversity of this city and this country.”

The Toronto rally was inspired by a February 24 demonstration at the Danish embassy in Washington, DC. Similar events are now planned for London, England; Sydney, Australia; and New York, San Francisco, and Chicago.

The Toronto event will take place from 12 to 1:30 PM at 151 Bloor Street West.

Purewal and Dale emphasized that the rally is not meant to endorse the Muhammad caricatures.

“I cannot stress this enough: people who are appalled by the cartoons can join us just as easily as people who don’t see anything wrong with them,” Purewal said. “We are not demonstrating in support of their substance. Rather, we are gathering to support the right of the free press to publish what it wishes, even when doing so might be hurtful to some; we are standing in support of a democratic ally whose people have been senselessly threatened for something that appeared in that free press. These are our messages.”

For more information, please contact Nav Purewal at 416-575-4025, Daniel Dale at 416-809-2219, or standfordenmark@gmail.com

---

Related: Islam, Political Correctness, Canada

---