The Liberal government has announced its first public safety bill: the “Combatting Hate Act.”
The party said there has been a “horrifying rise in hate crimes” across Canada and it “will not tolerate anyone being made to feel afraid because of who they are.”
“Rising antisemitism, Islamophobia, homophobia and transphobia have left too many people feeling unsafe in their own communities,” the Department of Justice said in a statement today.
The Liberals said the legislation will:
Make it a criminal offence to “intimidate and obstruct” anyone from accessing schools, community centres or places of worship “primarily used by an identifiable group”
Make it a criminal offence to “wilfully promote hatred against an identifiable group by displaying certain terrorism or hate symbols in public”
Make “hate-motivated crime a specific offence”
Speaking a press conference today, Minister of Justice and Attorney General Sean Fraser said the law names two specific "hate symbols" – the Nazi swastika and the Nazi SS insignia – as well as any symbols associated with designated terrorist groups.
He struggled to explain exactly how the law would work, however, saying it would depend on the "circumstances" whether a person would be prosecuted by police for simply having "hate symbols" inside their own home or on their T-shirt.
Fraser said a "purely private display" of symbols would not "necessarily mean that you're promoting hate."
He added: "It's impossible to say with certainty in a hypothetical situation whether an individual has this specific motivation behind the display of hate symbols without having an opportunity to dig into the motivation they may have for the display of the symbols in the first place."
Fraser also told one reporter: "To be clear, this is not about a Palestinian flag."
The government insisted the new law would “respect” freedom of expression and peaceful assembly.
“It targets criminal behaviour that intimidates or obstructs access to community spaces, making clear where the line is drawn,” the Department of Justice said.
The Liberals have also pledged to define what “hatred” means in the legislation.
Today, I tabled a new law in the House of Commons that will protect against hate crimes in this country.
— Sean Fraser (@SeanFraserMP) September 19, 2025
Too many Canadians lack the ability to live freely and celebrate their identity without fear after the recent rise in hate and violence. pic.twitter.com/3q4H1w6aRF
The bill will also remove the requirement that the attorney general provide consent for a hate propaganda charge to be laid.
“Canadians deserve to live freely in their communities, regardless of the colour of their skin, the god they pray to, or the person they love,” Fraser said.
“Sadly, incidents of hate against entire communities have taken these freedoms from too many of our neighbours. This legislation strengthens protections against hate so Canadians of all races and ethnicities, faiths, sexualities and genders can feel safe in their communities and be free to celebrate their identities.”
According to federal data released in March, police-reported hate crimes – i.e. crimes that "target the integral or visible parts of a person's identity," according to the government – there was a "sharp rise" in incidents in 2023.
There were 4,777 hate crime reports made with police two years ago, up 32 per cent from 3,612 in 2022.
Hate crime reports in which Jews were the victims shot up 71 per cent (900 incidents), with a similar surge seen for Muslims (211 incidents, up 94 per cent).
The Liberal bill comes after months of campaigning from Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre, who has accused the prime minister and his predecessor of unleashing a "Liberal crime wave" with "soft-on-crime laws."
Earlier this week, Poilievre announced plans to introduce a "Jail Not Bail Act" that his party said would "strengthen public safety and tip the scales of justice back in favour of innocent Canadians."
During the election, meanwhile, Poilievre promised a crackdown on antisemitic and other hate crimes by introducing laws related to ethnic or religiously motivated crimes.
That would include "hate marches," he said, and any visitors to Canada found guilty of such a crime would be deported.
The leader of the opposition is yet to say whether he will support the Liberals' new bill, however.
