Councillors relay concerns about frequency of ‘freedom rallies’ in Saskatoon

At least two Saskatoon councillors say their constituents are becoming more concerned about the “freedom rallies” taking place on a regular basis in Saskatoon.

In particular, more complaints have been heard about the “children’s festival,” where dozens of people who were unmasked gathered near the Vimy Memorial last weekend.

At Monday’s council meeting, councillors Mairin Loewen and Cynthia Block told administration some residents now fear for their safety and have simply decided to avoid the area of downtown Saskatoon where the rallies take place.

“One thing that has kind of jumped out as a theme has been that people have said to me, ‘I don’t feel comfortable using this public space anymore because of the frequency of the rallies and the risks that they pose, and that these kinds of activities are monopolizing public spaces,’ ” said Loewen.

Block asked community services general manager Lynn LaCroix what role permitting of events may or may not have in such situations. LaCroix said the city does not require protests, rallies or demonstrations to take out permits.

“In this particular case, the administration was not notified of this event, until there was some social media around the event that was occurring,” she said.

LaCroix said protests in parks in Saskatoon are not uncommon and the right to peaceful assembly is a Charter right. However, the city parks usage bylaw does speak to public safety.

“It is an event that, would it have applied for special event permit, it would not have been issued, as they would not have been able to demonstrate that they were in full compliance of the public health orders,” she added.

“So, am I to understand that the city really has no role when these types of events happen and that they are not technically in violation by not getting a permit and that any enforcement activity is the sole jurisdiction of Saskatoon police?” asked Block.

Loewen then also asked whether changing city bylaws might make sense.

“At what point does a rally or demonstration actually become a regular user of a park, similar to a sports league?” she said.

“There currently isn’t anything in specificity within the bylaw that would say if a rally or a protest group holds a rally or a protest or a demonstration week after week after week, at what point did they become classified as an actual event within a part requiring a permit,” LaCroix answered.

According to city solicitor Cindy Yelland it’s a complex issue, and the event organizers aren’t coming to the City of Saskatoon asking for permits.

“So even if we changed the bylaw, I suspect they would still not come to us and ask us for a permit,” she said.

Yelland said fines under the Public Health Act are higher than they would be for any event that broke a bylaw, so administration officials are working with Saskatoon police to enforce rules that already exist.