Bill C-9 aims to strengthen Canada’s hate crime laws. We support this goal. Our Dharmic communities have been facing rising hate and violence, and we all need stronger protections.

However, we cannot support legislation that fights hate by perpetuating it.

Bill C-9 contains a critical and dangerous flaw: it equates the sacred Swastika with the Nazi symbol of hate, the Hakenkreuz (hooked cross).

The Problem

Bill C-9 makes it an offence to display in any public place the “Nazi Swastika” and additionally criminalizes the display of symbols that “so nearly resemble” the banned emblem. Without explicit clarification and exemption, the sacred Swastika displayed on temple doors, during community events, at residential entrances, or even in religious texts becomes legally indistinguishable from a hate symbol.

This creates immediate legal jeopardy for millions of practicing Canadians and a chilling effect on their ability to engage in day-to-day religious practices.

The Solution

The solution is straightforward: distinguish the Swastika from the Hakenkreuz (Hooked Cross), and enshrine explicit protection for the Swastika while banning the Hakenkreuz.

This approach already has strong precedent and enjoys broad support.

Precedent

Here in North America, the states of California, Virginia, and Washington have successfully banned Nazi symbols while explicitly protecting the sacred Swastika. Across the globe, in Australia, the states of New South Wales and Victoria have done the same. Germany, which maintains some of the world’s strictest anti-Nazi laws, also distinguishes the Hakenkreuz from the Swastika.

Even in Canada, the police services of Peel Region and Montreal already distinguish between the two symbols in their hate crime manuals.

Policy Support

This policy of distinction is supported by Canadian politicians across party lines—including former MPs Chandra Arya and Peter Julian, and Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe.

It has also been endorsed by B’nai Brith Canada, which considers the conflation of the sacred Swastika with the Nazi Hakenkreuz to be “a historical injustice.” Even the Israeli Embassy in Canada now uses the correct term “Nazi hooked cross (Hakenkreuz).”

Our Recommendations

Three simple amendments to Bill C-9:

Amendment 1: Correct the Terminology

Remove all instances of “Nazi Swastika”; use only “Nazi Hakenkreuz (Nazi hooked cross)” throughout the Bill. Standardize this terminology for use across all official communications.

Amendment 2: Insert an Exemption Clause

Add the following provision:

“For greater certainty, nothing in this section prohibits the religious or cultural use of the Swastika by Hindu, Buddhist, Jain, Sikh, Indigenous, or other communities and individuals in the context of their religious and cultural practices.”

This exemption aligns Canadian law with international best practices.

Amendment 3: Public Education

Implement a 90-day public education period during which the government, in consultation with affected communities, disseminates educational materials explaining the distinction between the sacred Swastika and the Nazi Hakenkreuz.

These amendments require no additional enforcement resources and maintain the full force of hate crime protections while safeguarding the Charter rights of over 1.9 million Canadians.