An estimated 5,000 people gathered in Canada’s capital of Ottawa, Ontario, September 12, 2020, to participate in the Integrity March aimed to raise awareness about legal Canadian gun owners.
 
Organized by the Canadian Coalition for Firearm Rights, protestors convened in front of parliament buildings before marching through the city led by a band of bagpipers. A report stated there were people from every corner of Canada at the march. 
 
Chief Officer of CCFR, Rod Giltaca, said it was important that gun owners make their voices heard. “Over the last couple decades, we’ve taken the course of just keeping quiet and minding our own business. That hasn’t worked, obviously. We’re under assault again,” he explained. “I think our goal today is just for gun owners to be proud of Canadian gun culture. We have a very vibrant gun culture; guns are nothing new in Canada.”
 
The Integrity March on September 12, 2020, in front of the Canadian Parliament. (Photo: CCFR)

On May 1, 2020, the Trudeau government passed a sweeping gun ban on over 1,500 “military-style assault weapons." The ban prohibited the use of those weapons with a government buy-back program on the horizon which would essentially result in confiscation. Parliament was suspended at the time of the ban, due to COVID-19, resulting in no opposition to the proposal. Trudeau used an order of council to pass the ban. Civil opposition to the ban, however, was immediate and intense among an estimated 2 million Canadian firearm owners, hunters, sport shooters, and collectors. 

Days later, the CCFR announced it would fight the ban in court arguing that it infringes on Section 7 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. “Everyone has the right to life, liberty, and security of the person and the right not to be deprived thereof except in accordance with the principles of fundamental justice," the charter says. Unfortunately, unlike the United States, Canada does not have the Second Amendment.

Further resistance to the ban came last week, when an e-petition demanded Justin Trudeau's Liberals immediately scrap the gun ban. The online petition garnered over 230,000 signatures, making it the most signed online petition in Canada’s history. It will be tabled before Parliament on Sep 23. Since it is an official parliamentary petition, the government will have to respond to it.

The CCFR flag flies above the crowd at the Integrity March. (Photo: CCFR)
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