Canada Journal – News of the World Articles and videos to bring you the biggest Canadian news stories from across the country every day
An Edmonton man was given a $543 ticket for refusing to remove a sign from the back window of his car that says “F–k Harper.”
“I got pissed off and thought ‘It’s time again to take a stand,’” Rob Wells said. “So I just had some pink paper here and put it in the back of the car.
“It’s staying on there for quite a long time. Hopefully I don’t need it on there after October 19.”
Wells got the $543 ticket from RCMP just south of Leduc on Sunday after he said fellow motorists complained to police about the sign.
This isn’t the first time Wells has shown his passion for politics with the help of his favourite four-letter word.
He first gained notoriety when he drove around with a similar sign in 2000 — this one aimed at former Premier Ralph Klein — to protest Bill 11 and the privatization of hospitals.
University of Alberta Faculty of Law professor Eric Adams said Wells’ rebellious act of free speech is generally protected under the Charter of Rights and Freedoms.
Political free speech is one of the most protected forms of free speech in the eyes of a court of law, he added.
But it depends on which context this speech is used.
“Some kinds of laws which are in the nature of safety, (like) the ability to see out his back window, or something, those kinds of concerns might be enough to limit free speech,” Adams said.
Wells said he’s looking forward to fighting his ticket in court, and wants to see others make statement signs of their own — even with a little profanity thrown in for emphasis.
“If they love Harper, they can put that up, too. But I think it’s really important to take our politics a lot more seriously,” he said.
“Some people are shocked by that word because some people are still old fashioned. But it’s a pretty useful word. ‘Stop Harper’ doesn’t have anywhere near the same impact as this word does.”
Agencies/Canadajournal
