Friends of Simon Wiesenthal Center (FSWC) welcomes France's initiative to combat online racism and antisemitism. French Prime Minister Edouard Philippe announced new legislation Monday that would crackdown on social media platforms and pressure them to remove hate speech from the web. Philippe also proposed an initiative aimed at tackling racism and antisemitism in schools and communities.

Monday’s announcement by the French government brings to light Canada’s ongoing debate over hate speech enforcement, particularly as it relates to the now-repealed Section 13 of the Canadian Human Rights Act. Section 13, repealed in 2013, was aimed at practices communicated via phone or Internet that were “likely to expose anyone to hatred or contempt by reason of the fact that he or she is a member of a particular identifiable group.”

As a human rights organization, FSWC has argued the merits of Section 13 as a resource in the ongoing battle against cyberhate. It proved a valuable tool in our efforts to have hate sites removed from Canadian ISPs and we encourage continued discussion surrounding the issue of online hate speech in Canada and around the globe. 

"The internet is a powerful tool that's proven a hospitable breeding ground for racist and antisemitic activity," said FSWC President and CEO Avi Benlolo. "While we support the right to free speech, bigotry should never be tolerated whether out in the world or on the web. Our organization welcomes ongoing efforts at the state level to combat cyberhate and prevent its proliferation.”