The Ontario Superior Court of Justice ruled that Brian Webster was “motivated by actual malice toward the plaintiffs who were members of a vulnerable community.”
Court Finds Anti-2SLGBTQ+ Slur “Groomer” to be Defamatory Hate Speech in $380,000 Ruling
Canadian Anti-Hate Network
Source: Unsplash
A Calgary man has been ordered by the Ontario Superior Court of Justice to pay $380,000 in general and aggravated damages to three drag performers and a 2SLGBTQ+ advocacy group following a defamation lawsuit.
The suit, which was brought by Rainbow Alliance Dryden, as well as its co-chair, and two others, was based on two Facebook posts made by Brian Webster of Calgary.
The posts–one of which is still published at the time of writing–were made by Webster to a Thunder Bay Facebook group, ostensibly for monitoring criminal activity in the city. In the posts, he alleges that the plaintiffs are “groomers,” a lie perpetuated by hatemongers characterizing 2SLGBTQ+ people, especially transgender people, as sexual predators of children.
In a decision released on Thursday, Justice H. M. Pierce ruled that Webster’s conduct was “high-handed, spiteful, malicious, and oppressive.
“I find that, on a balance of probabilities, Mr. Webster was motivated by actual malice toward the plaintiffs who were members of a vulnerable community. The court condemns this conduct. It was hate speech.”
Each of the four plaintiffs was awarded $75,000 in general damages and $20,000 in aggravated damages, totalling $380,000.
The two online posts made by Webster received multiple comments.
“Can we buy tags to hunt these animals?,” one user wrote.
Another user posted, “Why do they have to parade and push their agendas on children! [sic] Sickening!”
According to the court, Webster replied to multiple comments with likes and laughing emojis.
The case drew attention in December, when an anti-SLAPP motion was brought by Webster in an attempt to have the case against him thrown out. Anti-SLAPP–or strategic lawsuits against public participation–laws exist to protect individuals against malicious or bad faith lawsuits aimed at chilling free expression.
In her December ruling, Justice Tracey Nieckarz concluded that “groomer” “is a slur used to allege that drag performers sexualize children and aim to recruit them into the 2SLGBTQI+community. I agree with the Plaintiffs that perpetuating such stereotypes and myths about members of the 2SLGBTQI community is not public interest speech.”
The motion was denied.
The decision from Justice H. M. Pierce lands another victory for drag performers and the 2SLGBTQ+ community: the word “groomer” is defamatory hate speech, and is subject to significant rulings against those who wield it to harm members of the community.
Lawyer Douglas Judson, who represented the plaintiffs, told the Canadian Anti-Hate Network that the decision is “a landmark victory for the 2SLGBTQIA+ community, and certainly the drag community.
“We’ve been seeing such a spike in this violent and disingenuous rhetoric suggesting that queer people and people who perform drag are pedophiles. If you’re going to engage in this type of hate speech then there is civil liability that can be attached to it.”
In a post to their Facebook page, Rainbow Alliance Dryden said, “This is a big win for us and the drag community! And a good reminder that actions do indeed have consequences.”
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