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Thousands gather in Vancouver on May 31, 2020 for a peaceful protest against racism, injustice and police brutality.Darryl Dyck / The Canadian Press
Nik Nanos is the chief data scientist at Nanos Research, a global researcher at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars in Washington, and the official pollster for The Globe and Mail and CTV News.
The horrible truth is that the online world is both a valuable source of information and a catalyst for hatred and racism. Do Canadians Care?
A new national survey from the Canadian Race Relations Foundation sheds light on the current position of Canadians on online hate. At the heart of the research findings is the view that a majority of Canadians (58 percent), regardless of age, gender or region, believe that hateful and racist online content is a major problem. in Canada, while only 11 percent believe it is not a problem at all.
How much of a problem do you think hateful and racist online content and behavior is in Canada?
How much of a problem do you think hateful and racist online content and behavior is in Canada?
How much of a problem do you think hateful and racist online content and behavior is in Canada?
Measures to combat online hatred are being taken by the governments of some countries. Australia implements ‘anti-troll’ legislation to make social media platforms more accountable, and Germany clamps down on hate speech online, threatening to fine companies up to $ 73 million if they do not remove “clearly illegal” content within 72 hours.
Canadians are also ready to take action when it comes to addressing hate, racism and discrimination. Almost four in five respondents (79 percent) support the introduction of legislation to combat serious forms of harmful online content. When faced with the trade-off between tackling hate speech and limiting freedom of expression, people are more than twice as likely to worry about the impact of hate speech and racism (56%) than governments and social media companies restricting citizens’ rights to express themselves and to protect user privacy (21 percent).
Social media are in the crosshairs of Canadians who believe they need to be more proactive and take more responsibility for what is said on their platforms. About three in four Canadians (76%) say social media platforms are legally responsible for removing hateful and extremist content before it can harm, and nearly seven in 10 (68%) say social media platforms social media should provide data and information relating to algorithms, content moderation and other relevant information to keep online spaces safe and prevent damage.
The twist is that the same social media platforms that allow racist content and violent actions against racialized communities are also a weapon of transparency, capturing this undeniably unacceptable behavior.
A Black Lives Matter mural is painted on a closed store in Montreal in 2020.Paul Chiasson / The Canadian Press
The appetite for action goes beyond simply regulating social media platforms. Three in four Canadians (75%) support (score of 7 to 10 out of 10) strengthening the Canadian Human Rights Act and the Criminal Code to fight hate online more effectively.
Research suggests that Canadians want real action offline as well. Canadians are four times more likely to support the development of a justice strategy for Black Canadians to address racism and discrimination against Blacks in the criminal justice system (55%) than to oppose such a plan (12%). Meanwhile, nearly six in ten (58%) support the creation of an independent civilian oversight body for the RCMP.
It should be noted that having dedicated hate crime units in large cities is generally viewed positively. More than seven in ten Canadians (72%) say all major cities have dedicated hate crime units within local police forces, with about one in 20 opposing the creation of such units.
WHAT THE SOLUTIONS DO
SUPPORT FROM CANADIANS?
Put in place legislation to fight against severe forms
harmful online content
Making social media platforms legally responsible
for the removal of hateful and extremist content
before he can do any harm
Strengthening the Canadian Human Rights Act
and the Criminal Code for better
fight hate online
Ensure that all major cities have consecrated hate
criminal units within local police forces
Require social media platforms
provide data and information relating to
algorithms, content moderation and others
information useful for maintaining safety
online spaces and prevent damage
Create an independent civilian oversight body
of the RCMP
Developing a Justice Strategy for Black Canadians
to fight against racism and anti-black discrimination
in the criminal justice system
Note: Numbers may not add to 100 due to rounding.
MURAT YÜKSELIR / THE GLOBE AND THE COURIER, SOURCE:
NANO RESEARCH
WHAT SOLUTIONS ARE CANADIANS SUPPORTING?
Put in place legislation to fight against severe forms
harmful online content
Making social media platforms legally responsible
for the removal of hateful and extremist content
before he can do any harm
Strengthening of the Canadian Human Rights Act and
Criminal Code to fight online hate more effectively
Ensure that all major cities have consecrated hate
criminal units within local police forces
Require social media platforms to publicly provide data
and information related to algorithms, content moderation,
and other relevant information to maintain safety
online spaces and prevent damage
Create an independent civilian oversight body
of the RCMP
Develop a justice strategy for black Canadians to
fight against racism and anti-black discrimination in the
criminal justice system
Note: Numbers may not add to 100 due to rounding.
MURAT YÜKSELIR / THE GLOBE AND THE COURIER, SOURCE:
NANO RESEARCH
WHAT SOLUTIONS ARE CANADIANS SUPPORTING?
Introduce legislation to tackle serious forms of harmful online content
Make social media platforms legally responsible for removing hateful content and
extremist content before it can harm
Strengthen the Canadian Human Rights Act and the Criminal Code to fight online hate more effectively
Ensure that all major cities have dedicated hate crime units within local police forces
Require social media platforms to publicly provide data and information related to algorithms, content
moderation and other relevant information to keep online spaces safe and prevent damage
Creation of an independent civilian oversight body of the RCMP
Develop a Black Canadians Justice Strategy to Address Racism and Discrimination Against Blacks
in the criminal justice system
Note: Numbers may not add to 100 due to rounding.
MURAT YÜKSELIR / LE GLOBE ET LE MAIL, SOURCE: NANOS RESEARCH
What does all this mean?
First, the appetite for action against hatred and racism is high. Second, only about one in ten Canadians do not see racism as a problem and are reluctant to see action. The flip side is that while this is not a consensus opinion, large sections of the population see a problem and support concrete action in one form or another.
Third, social media platforms with many anonymous inflammatory “voices” are seen as chairs for racism, hatred and incitement to violence. Canadians are quite ready to hold these organizations to account and demand action, even at the cost of some restrictions on freedom of expression. To paraphrase the old saying, the right swinging fist ends up on another person’s nose.
The big question may very well be: is it too much of a larger global problem to address? May be. Are the solutions supported by Canadians perfect? No. What real impact will they have? It is uncertain.
The alternative – do nothing – is not acceptable to a significant number of Canadians. Like many things in life, the first step is to recognize that there is a problem. The second step is to take responsibility and the third step is to engage in a real dialogue on the way forward.
Canada is neither immune to hate online nor unique in its existence. We can, however, think about the country and the society we want to be and begin this journey.
Nanos conducted a representative online survey of 2,018 Canadians aged 18 and over, between November 3 and 8, 2021. The research was commissioned by the Canadian Race Relations Foundation and was conducted by Nanos Research.
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