Council votes to draft 'bubble bylaw' to curtail protests near 'vulnerable' sites

Ottawa city councillors voted on Friday to draft a bylaw creating buffer zones of up to 80 metres to limit demonstrations around sites and facilities considered "vulnerable public infrastructure."

If enacted, a so-called "bubble zone bylaw" could restrict protests near institutions such as schools, hospitals and places of worship. It would be aimed at preventing harassment and hate speech. 

A joint meeting of council's Emergency Preparedness and Protective Services and Public Works and Infrastructure committees voted 14-2 in favour of the motion, after Coun. Allan Hubley proposed modifications to Coun. David Hill's original draft. 

Hubley's modifications aimed to mitigate concerns that Hill's original motion contained terms such as "nuisance demonstration" and "intimidation" that were considered too subjective and risked giving police too much discretion in enforcing the bylaw. 

The amended motion proposed a more "narrowly tailored" bylaw to prohibit demonstrations "during operational hours or specific high-risk periods" within 80 metres of "vulnerable social infrastructure."

The motion specifically exempts protests over labour disputes or negotiations, as well as demonstrations not specifically directed at a protected site. 

Embassies, city hall and Parliament would still be fair game for demonstrations, even if those buildings contain educational facilities, clinics or other care services.

City entering 'area of risk,' councillor warns

In bringing the motion, Hill insisted "common sense prevails."

"What we're looking for is a made-in-Ottawa solution for Ottawa," he said.

After the vote, Hill told CBC the ultimate goal is to introduce "a bubble zone bylaw that will help keep our community safe while allowing for peaceful protest."

But Coun. Sean Devine, who alongside Coun. Jessica Bradley voted against the motion, said he worried the city had "chartered into an area of risk."

"We may have also kind of cleaved away at some fundamental rights and freedoms," he told CBC after the vote.

Devine said he's concerned "legitimate, grounded and reasonable protest" could be restricted by the bylaw.

"Protest is dialogue, protest is exchange, and we need dialogue, we need exchange as a means of trying to bring about necessary change sometimes,"  the Knoxdale-Merivale councillor said. 

Devine, who was earlier outvoted in a separate motion to defer the plan, said he fears the city is rushing ahead unnecessarily. 

"We are not the experts on these kind of constitutional matters," he said. 

A lively debate

The motion followed two days of lively debate and personal testimony from Ottawa residents, some strongly in favour and others strongly against the proposed bylaw

Members of Ottawa's Jewish community spoke of feeling particularly under threat since the Oct. 7, 2023, attacks by Hamas and Israel's military response, both of which have sparked demonstrations in Ottawa. 

Ted Cohen, the CEO of Hillel Lodge, a long-term care home on Broadview Avenue housing several Jewish residents including Holocaust survivors, described a loud protest outside a nearby Jewish community centre last fall. 

"Protesters arrived with signage, flags, banners, bullhorns, loudspeakers and drums. Most had their faces covered. The protest was loud, forceful and unrelenting," Cohen said, adding that speakers used during the demonstration were so powerful that vibrations could be felt inside the home. 

"Staff reported residents asking repeatedly, 'What's happening? Why are they yelling? Are we in danger?'" Cohen continued. He'd like demonstrations around nursing homes to face restrictions. 

At the same time, several people who urged councillors to vote against developing the bylaw invoked separate demonstrations last year targeting so-called "gender ideology" outside Nepean High School.

Those demonstrations inspired counter-protests that participants and supporters said allowed them to feel safer and exercise their own Charter rights. 

If a bubble of 100 metres was imposed between protests and protected sites, as some have recommended, "I'm still going to be putting my body between these people and my children," said Katy de Sousa, a parent of a child attending school in the area.

On the other hand, "if I cross to 99 metres, [there's a fear] I'm going to be slammed with a ticket that's going to change my livelihood," she said. 

Friday's motion asked city staff to consult widely and return a draft bylaw to councillors within nine months.