John Carpay: The Doctrine of State Neutrality Should Apply to Land Acknowledgements

Ontario school board’s refusal to allow discussion of land acknowledgements at council meetings violates freedom of expression.

A scoreboard shows a message declaring an indigenous land acknowledgement before an NHL hockey game between the Montreal Canadiens and the San Jose Sharks in Montreal on Oct. 19, 2021. The Canadian Press/Ryan Remior

Commentary

Across Canada, indigenous land acknowledgements are now routinely imposed on audiences at all kinds of public meetings. With few exceptions, this relatively new practice has not been debated or approved by the citizens who are required to sit through these political statements.