COLUMN: Think Again – Professionals need freedom of speech too

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This article was published 16/01/2023 (834 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Section 2(b) of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms states that everyone in Canada has “freedom of thought, belief, opinion, and expression.”

Sadly, this right is being eroded in Canada. Nowhere do we see this more clearly than in the way that professional regulatory bodies are policing the speech of their members.

The latest example is the conflict between the College of Psychologists of Ontario (CPO) and Dr. Jordan Peterson, a well-known psychologist and former professor at the University of Toronto.

Even though Peterson has not been seeing patients for nearly five years, the CPO is threatening to take away his license. None of the complaints made against Peterson have anything to do with his work as a psychologist. Rather, Peterson is accused of posting unprofessional tweets that allegedly reflect badly on his profession.

As a result, the CPO wants Peterson to participate (at his own expense) in a series of social media training sessions. If Peterson refuses to comply, the CPO could take away his professional license. This means he would no longer be able to work as a psychologist.

Unsurprisingly, people have strong feelings about Jordan Peterson and he does have a tendency to say some controversial things. However, we must ask ourselves whether it makes sense to take away someone’s license over something that has nothing to do with his professional work.

In other words, do we really want regulatory bodies to go down the road of policing the speech of their members? Think of the chilling effect the threat of losing one’s license will have on someone’s willingness to speak out on contentious topics.

Of course, Peterson’s critics are quick to point out that he will be just fine even if he loses his license. After all, Peterson has millions of social media followers and he will no doubt continue to sell thousands of books and receive lucrative public speaking fees. Peterson is obviously not financially dependent on his work as a psychologist.

But it’s important to remember that for every Jordan Peterson out there, there are thousands of ordinary professionals across Canada who cannot afford to lose their livelihoods. This creates a strong incentive for them to stay quiet and keep their opinions to themselves. As a result, we lose some important voices in public discourse.

The CPO is far from the only regulatory body that is going after members who express controversial views. Registered nurse Amy Eileen Hamm is currently on trial with the British Columbia College of Nursing and Midwives. Her “crime” is that she is a vocal proponent of the sex-based rights of women and girls. In other words, she believes that women have the right to separate spaces in washrooms and changerooms and that sports should be separated according to biological sex.

Like Peterson, the complaints against Hamm had nothing to do with her professional work. Rather, Hamm is on trial because she expressed an opinion that many consider to be unacceptable. Unlike Peterson, Hamm is financially dependent on her work as a nurse, so this case has huge implications for her future.

Meanwhile, Chanel Pfahl, a former Ottawa-area teacher, is being investigated by the Ontario College of Teachers for two Facebook posts arguing that critical race theory should not be taught in school. If Pfahl loses her case, she could lose her teacher’s license, even though no one has raised any concerns about her actual conduct in the classroom.

If Section 2(b) of the Charter means anything at all, it needs to apply to everyone in Canada—including professionals. Professional regulatory bodies have no business policing the speech of their members.

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Michael Zwaagstra is a high school teacher and a Steinbach city councillor. He can be reached at mzwaagstra@shaw.ca.