Still Running Off at the Keyboard

The Canadian Human Rights Commission has dismissed accusations that a Roman Catholic magazine was hate literature because it opposed homosexual rights, after Catholic Insight spent more than a year and an estimated $20,000 in legal fees fighting the complaint.

Father Alphonse de Valk, the editor of the small Toronto-based magazine, said the decision was welcome, but cautioned that the ruling can still be appealed to the Federal Court. "It's good news of course," he said. "But I don't want to start celebrating prematurely. If it's appealed to the court, then we may be spending another year on this."

In the ruling yesterday, the commission dismissed the complaint of Edmonton gay activist Rob Wells without a hearing into his allegations that the magazine promoted hatred against homosexuals, "because the material is not likely to expose a person or persons to hatred or contempt based on sexual orientation."

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