Long time reader, found possibly concerning subsection in Canadian Criminal Code. Thoughts?

2013-08-09T13:45:44+00:00

My immediate response was not because males are generally bigger but then I realized that every physical attribute that is associated with gender that would be important is already covered so yes this appears to be discrimination based only one sex. Also considering both sexes are basically on par for physical violence I dont see how it could be a useful factor but I may be missing something.

sputnik4024 · 2013-08-09T19:00:17+00:00

As an MRA I do admit that men can usually cause more damage if they were trying to (although they are less likely to because they actually get arrested when they assault people!)

seenloitering · 2013-08-09T19:28:12+00:00

Basically it says if you're assaulted and you're physically bigger or more capable then you can't use self defense as a defense.

Even more plainly, if you're a man hit by a woman - man up and take it.

MakhSC · 2013-08-09T16:19:47+00:00

All of these factors can be summarized as "physical differences" between the two people in question.

While I certainly agree that the physical attributes associated with gender are already covered by 'size' and by 'physical capabilities', I did go ahead and search section s.34(2) of the Criminal Code on the Canlii database. While there were 331 citations of this section, after a brief scan I did not notice any cases that appeared to hinge on the gender of the parties. It doesn't look like the word "gender" in this section has ever been used to the detriment of anyone.

I should also point out, that the section does not specifically single out men. I merely states that the gender of a party can be a relevant factor for consideration. If you read the section, the list of factors is quite long, and not exclusive. (the section states that relevant factors would be "including, but not limited to" the provided).

In the vast majority of self defence cases, gender has no relevance. In some, it does. In cases where it is relevant, judges are permitted to consider gender as part of their assessment of whether a person acted in self defence.

Summary: Good find, but no evidence that this section has ever harmed men, section can be equally applied to both genders, section only applies if gender is relevant to the situation.

seenloitering · 2013-08-09T19:55:25+00:00

I think it could be argued that it is, but that doesn't mean it's unconstitutional. Discrimination isn't unconstitutional in Canada if it is in the service of protecting a minority--and it's been successfully argued in Canadian courts that women are a minority.

rightsbot · 2013-08-09T13:04:17+00:00

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Title	Long time reader, found possibly concerning subsection in Canadian Criminal Code. Thoughts?
Author	Namelessnessly
Upvotes	13
Comments	25
Date	August 9, 2013 1:02 PM UTC (12 years ago)
Subreddit	Posted in /r/MensRights
Original Link	https://old.reddit.com/r/MensRights/comments/1k0u2y/long_time_reader_found_possibly_concerning/
Archive Link	https://theredarchive.com/r/MensRights/long-time-reader-found-possibly-concerning.1166774 https://theredarchive.com/post/1166774

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