Feb 21, 2012
Quebec students must take ethics-religion course
The Supreme Court of Canada has sided with the provincial government and the earlier ruling by the Quebec Court of Appeal, rejecting an appeal from Quebec parents who claimed their children’s freedom of religion was being infringed, by having to complete an ethics and religious culture program implemented in the province’s schools in 2008.
The program, which was introduced to elementary and high schools by the provincial Education Ministry, replaced religion classes with a curriculum covering all major faiths found in Quebec culture, including Catholic, Protestant, Jewish and aboriginal beliefs.
The top court said that the appellants had not proven that the ethics and religion course infringed their freedom of religion, nor that the refusal of the school board to exempt their children had violated their constitutional rights.
