Paul Magder, as almost everyone in Ontario should know by now, is the Toronto furrier who has challenged Ontario's Sunday closing law (The Retail Business Holidays Act) all the way to the Supreme Court of Canada where his effort to have the law declared a violation of our fundamental religious freedoms was successful, but to no avail.
On December 18, 1986, Canada's Supreme Court ruled that, despite its violation of our religious freedoms, Ontario's Retail Business Holidays Act was nevertheless "justifiable."
When we heard of Magder's setback, we thought that a public show of support was definitely in order and arrangements were soon undertaken to introduce ourselves to him and offer him that support. On April 21, 1987, Freedom Party was proud to be able to sponsor an event held in Paul Magder's honour. This was an accomplishment in itself, considering the vow that Magder made on CTV's "W5" program --- that he would never again support any political party or candidate.
The $50 a plate dinner drew about 110 attendees and judging by the response to the evening's presentations and activities, everyone seemed to have enjoyed themselves. Media coverage was extensive, though limited to the broadcast media, and much was accomplished in terms of publicizing the support for the elimination of Ontario's Sunday closing laws.
Even more was accomplished in terms of Freedom Party's growth and public profile. People who had never heard of Freedom Party contacted our London offices to see how they could get involved and organize in their communities, and arrangements are currently underway to do just that.
The speeches of Mr. Magder, and the three other guest speakers at the dinner, Messrs. Robert Metz and Marc Emery, and Dr. D.D. Devnich, have been transcribed and are available to members. Contact us for details.
As we go to press, Paul Magder's lengthy trial to contest the myriad of charges against him is still underway after several weeks of testimony, evidence and witnesses. In our next issue, which will follow soon, we will bring you up to date on this important and potentially historic courtroom battle. Best of luck, Paul!
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last updated on April 28, 2002