The assault of David Menzies at the hands of a member of an RCMP security detail as Mr. Menzies was asking questions to an elected official has a few lessons for citizens of a liberal democracy.
Mr. Menzies, a journalist with Rebel News, was assaulted, detained, and falsely arrested while he attempted to get answers from Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland. Mr. Menzies asked why the federal government stubbornly refuses to list Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps among terrorist organizations.
Mr. Menzies’ question was perfectly appropriate, considering that at the time Ms. Freeland was entering a memorial for victims of Flight PS752—the Ukrainian International Airlines jetliner shut down by the Iranian military in January 2020.
Whether one dislikes Mr. Menzies or Rebel News is irrelevant. Every citizen who values liberal democracy should stand against the obstruction and malicious attacks of members of the press at the hands of state authority, regardless of their personal views.
All citizens are entitled to question elected officials, particularly when they don’t answer many questions in the House of Commons.
The argument that Mr. Menzies is “not a journalist” is a red herring. Even if he had never gone to a journalism school, he makes a living as a journalist. He identifies as one. Ironically, CBC and the federal government accept any man’s affirming claim of being a woman and provide “free” tampons for him in the men’s washrooms of all federal buildings—CBC’s included. More ironically still, both organs support the denial of such affirmations to be a human rights offence.
Hundreds of Canadians work as “journalists” but have not ever graduated from a journalism program. Some of them are excellent at the craft while some are not. The essence of journalism lies in the dissemination of information, the questioning and analyzing of issues, and holding powers accountable, which Mr. Menzies has been doing for years, albeit in an often unorthodox style.
The debate about who can be considered a “journalist” is largely settled. Courts have accepted members of new media and citizen journalists to be journalists. Not surprisingly, some governments, feeling the heat from alternative media outlets and citizen journalism, crassly smear those who question them and call them to account.
Pretending that police assaulting a journalist might be acceptable because the government and the state broadcaster don’t recognize a news organization is indeed despicable.
It is not up to politicians to choose who is a journalist in Canada or how they practice their craft. The failure of Canada’s notable journalists to defend their peers against assault by police and the scorn and disparagement of politicians tarnishes the integrity of Canadian journalism. Defending journalism selectively, based on government taste and mainstream media preferences, undermines the very essence of a free and independent press.
Independent law enforcers ought to be more faithful to their oaths. It is precisely because the state media and government officials dislike journalists like Mr. Menzies and his employer that Mr. Menzies and his colleagues deserve as much and perhaps even more protection from law enforcement if the Rule of Law is to be observed and preserved.
