Misinformation and the “keffiyeh ban”

There is information circulating on social media that Regional Council is attempting to ban people from wearing the keffiyeh in Council Chambers.

This is patently false.

Patently false.

There has been zero – ZERO – discussion about banning any articles of clothing from being worn in Council Chambers. The bulk of the discussion around the display of signs in Council Chambers comes from my March 21, 2024 motion about Workplace Harassment and the Display of Signage in Council Chambers.

That motion read as follows:

WHEREAS Niagara Regional Council supported recommendations by the Association of Municipalities of Ontario (AMO) to strengthen Codes of Conduct to protect municipal staff from workplace harassment; and

WHEREAS Niagara Regional Council’s own Code of Conduct speaks to how Members of Council shall conduct themselves in relation to staff; and

WHEREAS staff of Niagara Region should never be the target of abusive behaviour, whether through public or private communications, from Councillors, co-workers, or the public; and

WHEREAS, on September 21, 2023, Niagara Regional Council also passed a motion affirming equity, diversity, and inclusion and recognizing the damaging impacts of hate and intolerance directed at Members of Council.

NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED

That Niagara Regional Council REAFFIRMS its position that neither Councillors nor staff should be targets of harassment or other abusive behaviour from Members of Council, co-workers, or the public; and

That staff PROVIDE a report for consideration by the Procedural By-Law Review Committee that includes draft wording to amend the Procedural By-law to address the display of signage in Council/Committee meetings that is contrary to Council’s position on and Niagara Region’s policies addressing Workplace Harassment and Violence, and also best practices for addressing their removal.

The motion was passed unanimously.

In discussing this motion at Procedural By-Law Review Committee, there – again – was no discussion about the keffiyeh or any other traditional clothing.

The language around “props and flags” comes from a review of practices from other regions and municipalities.

There was no discussion about considering clothing to be a prop of any sort.

All of the other changes being recommended for the Procedural By-Law come on the advice of the Integrity Commissioner, who also made no mention at all of the keffiyeh.