A proposed provincial bill in Canada would empower Ontario’s attorney general to establish 100-meter “safety zones” around drag shows and other LGBTQ events in the province that would make harassment, intimidation and “offensive remarks” punishable by fines up to $25,000.
The “Protecting 2SLGBTQI+ Communities Act,” which was unveiled Tuesday during a press conference attended by drag queens, was proposed by MPP Kristyn Wong-Tam, a member of the New Democratic Party (NDP) of Ontario.
“Drag artists have faced threats and intimidation all across Ontario over the past year,” Wong-Tam said, according to an Ontario NDP press release. “Businesses and 2SLGBTQI+ community members are being told that they can’t be out and proud from Thunder Bay to Hamilton, to Guelph, to Stratford, to Welland, Ottawa, and even Toronto. New Democrats are giving Ford’s Conservatives a chance to stop hate — today — by passing my private member’s bill.”
The bill would allow the attorney general of Ontario to temporarily designate locations throughout the province as “2SLGBTQI+ Community Safety Zones,” and anyone guilty of “anti-2SLGBTQI+ harassment, intimidation and hate speech within 100 meters of the designated address could receive a provincial fine of up to $25,000,” according to the press release.
Another portion of the bill would create an advisory committee made up lawmakers and members of the LGBTQ community to offer recommendations for preventing “anti-2SLGBTQI+ hate crimes in Ontario,” the press release explained.
Wong-Tam did not respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment by time of publication.
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The Protecting 2SLGBTQI+ Communities Act would prohibit “anti-2SLGBTQI+ harassment, intimidation and hate speech within 100 meters” of addresses designated by Ontario’s attorney general. (David McNew/Getty Images)
The proposed legislation resembles the Safe and Inclusive Access Bylaw passed last month by the City Council of Calgary, Alberta. The bylaw prohibits protests within 100 meters of a recreation facility or library entrance. The city council also modified its current public behavior bylaw to include the term “intimidation,” according to the CBC.
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The new Calgary bylaw came after Pastor Derek Reimer was arrested for allegedly disrupting a drag queen story hour put on by the Calgary Public Library that featured local drag performers reading to children.
Pastor Derek Reimer, 36, was arrested and charged last month with one count of breaching a release order that prohibited him from being within 200 meters of events involving the LGBTQ community. (Courtesy Nathaniel Pawlowski)
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Reimer was arrested a second time and charged for allegedly breaching a release order that prohibited him from communicating with self-identified LGBTQ people or being within 200 meters of events involving the LGBTQ community.
