A current affairs television show in France recently took a hard look at Canadian Veronica Bouchard.
They had a heated discussion about the Greater Toronto Area teenager whose racist videos, posted under an alias, have been viewed hundreds of thousands of times.
“I think it started the first time i saw my Führer, he’s just so handsome and lovely,” said 19-year-old Bouchard in a video shown as an example.
The commentators suggested nothing has been done in Canada due to weak anti-hate laws. But Bouchard believes she should be allowed to say what she wants.
READ MORE: Ontario teen who called for ‘white’ Canada has laptop seized by CBSA
Global News asked whether she understood that most people see her videos as spreading hatred.
“I believe they are wrong because I have the facts to back it up and it’s my freedom of speech,” she said.
Not necessarily, according to criminal lawyer David Butt.
He explained hate speech in Canada is the deliberate promotion of hatred to an identifiable group.
WATCH: GTA teen who called for ‘white’ Canada has laptops seized by CBSA
The difficulty is in proving something promotes hatred.
“What hate speech goes to is the extreme end of the spectrum, and it is demeaning and dehumanizing are other words the courts have used,” said Butt, adding he believes some of Bouchard’s content meets that criteria.
“There are a significant components where she particularly addresses themes of anti-Semitism and white supremacy that would qualify as hate speech.”
Bouchard said she was stopped at Toronto’s Pearson International Airport when returning from Germany, and that her laptop was seized by Canada Border Services Agency.
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She was told it was for investigation of spreading hate propaganda. But is she doing it on her own?
Some of Bouchard’s, scripts are written by hate groups, using the teenager as a propaganda tool, according to one expert.
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“She is just the voice of this,” said Christian Picciolini, Co-Founder of Life After Hate.
He showed an example, a Facebook post from one of them saying, “Looking for girls willing to read scripts for videos.”
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“They’ve specifically sought out young, pretty girls to take this message online,” said Picciolini.
“We definitely need to be careful of personalities like Veronica Bouchard, because from what I’ve seen online there are thousands and thousands and tens of thousands of people who are supporting her and even willing to be violent for her.”
As for Bouchard, she claimed she does her own writing.
“Most of it is my own words,” she insisted.
But are they words to be proud of?
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