Freedom of speech should be used responsibly: Checkup caller

Tina Bernard in Grand Prairie, Alta. has been faced with online trolls in the past, and her conclusion is that freedom of speech must be exercised within limits. Her perspective is that Canadians should stand for acceptance and equality, and freedom of speech should be curbed to reach those ends.

In an interview with Checkup host Duncan McCue, Bernard said, "If people believe that racist speech or hatred in any venue is an okay place to start, I would question them. I would ask, 'What are you trying to nourish?'"

Listen to the interview:

Cross Country Checkup5:49August 21, 2016- Tina Bernard

Should racist and sexist comments be banned from social media?

Read an edited transcript:

Duncan McCue: Do you think there is a chilling effect on free speech?

Tina Bernard: I think that 'free speech' is an American way of thinking. They understand it as, "we can say anything we want to and we won't be responsible for what we say or the effect it's going to have."

If you watch American politics, you see the situation they're in now where a presidential candidate is saying exactly what he thinks he should be allowed to say. And it's a pretty scary premise to build anything on.

If people believe that racist speech or hatred in any venue is an okay place to start, I would question them. I would ask, "What are you trying to nourish?" If you're trying to build a place with acceptance and equality, then the right to free speech should be used responsibly.

DM: I'm curious, Tina, have you ever experienced any kind of trolling online?

TB: Yes. I've actually had someone say to me: "We should just all finish what we started." He was speaking in terms of the genocide of indigenous peoples. I was like "Wow." He went there pretty quick.

There was nobody to police that. There was nobody to add anything different other than myself. And it was totally unacceptable. Here he was saying, "Yeah you know what, we didn't finish it, so let's finish it." I don't know if Canadians want to really be seen as that kind of people. But that's the rhetoric that's out there for a lot of different people, who fear ideas about who we are as indigenous people.

Tina Bernard's and Duncan McCue's comments have been edited and condensed. This online segment was prepared by Ayesha Barmania.