Freedom of thought

CLF responds to United Nations’ call for input on freedom of thought

On June 9, 2021, CLF submitted a written brief on freedom of thought to the UN Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Religion or Belief. The Special Rapporteur sought input on respecting, protecting, and fulfilling freedom of thought within UN member states, which will inform his report to the 76th Session of the U.N. General Assembly this September. 

CLF took this opportunity to share our perspective on the importance of protecting freedom of thought, and the detrimental effect of Canada’s inattention to this fundamental freedom as a discrete entitlement under section 2(b) of the Charter. Our submission highlighted CLF’s and our members’ work in this area through the Forgotten Freedoms and Forgotten Foundations projects. The submission pointed to the recent ground-breaking scholarship of University of Saskatchewan Professor Dwight Newman, including articles he presented at previous CLF Academic Symposiums (one of which was co-authored by Monica Fitzpatrick). The submissions also drew from CLF Executive Director Derek Ross’s recent scholarship on the pursuit of truth.

In addition, our submission emphasized to the Rapporteur that freedom of thought is not merely the consequence of a legal settlement, to be revised according to the whims and predilections of state actors, but is the corollary of the inalienable human dignity human beings possess as the image-bearers of God. Further, we emphasized that the right to freedom of thought encompasses more than the inviolable, internal thought lives of individuals; rather, rightly constructed, it also encompasses certain external, communal, and even institutional manifestations that demand the respect of state actors. 

We look forward to the Special Rapporteur’s upcoming report and the opportunity to contribute further to this important discussion among representatives of the nations of the world. 

“True freedom of thought is realised only where minority individuals and communities are at liberty to independently hold, develop, test, change and transmit ideas, opinions and beliefs—even those which are critical of or contrary to those espoused by the majority or dominant classes and institutions of society—without fear of unjustified state interference or sanction.”
— CLF's Submissions
 
 

Further Reading