Hamilton city hall heads to court after its removal order of digital billboard deemed ‘transphobic’

Hamilton city hall is headed to court after Mayor Andrea Horwath and her office ordered the removal of a digital billboard ad they deemed “transphobic.”

Drivers moving along the Lincoln Alexander Parkway might have seen the ad up last week promoting a website about stopping medical transitions for minors.

The ad did not stay up on the billboard for long after Horwath ordered its removal, calling it “transphobic.”

The group behind the advertisement was for a website called “Let Kids Be.” ARPA Canada says it’s pursuing legal action, claiming the mayor had no authority to order the removal.

“It’s not clear that she had any legal authority to do so. I mean this is the city’s foremost politician, deciding what people can and cannot say on a billboard,” says John Sikkema of ARPA Canada.

Sikkema is the lawyer for the grassroots Christian advocacy group. He says a group of affiliated volunteers fundraised for the display and says it intends to seek a court challenge against the mayor and city hall, citing a violation of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms.

Last Friday, Horwath posted a message on X: “While the billboard is not City-owned, it sits on City-leased space, and City advertising rules were not followed. We’ve directed Astral Media to remove it and put stronger safeguards in place.”

“The advertisement does not violate any city policy. We’re familiar with the Canadian Code of Advertising Standards. This advertisement is related to an important public policy issue and it just does not amount to discrimination or anything else that may be a violation of the rules,” says Sikkema.

Horwath added that hate-related incidents are on the rise in Hamilton, and people within the 2SLGBTQ+ community were among the most frequently targeted groups last year.

CHCH News reached out to the mayor’s office Tuesday, and asked which city advertising rule was broken when the ad went up and when was it removed. No response was given.

“I think it’s a shame that ARPA would waste all these resources in order to effectively codify hate. We do have freedom of expression in Canada, but that freedom of expression is not absolute,” says local activist Jelena Vermilion.

Vermilion, who is transgender, believes legal proceedings should go in favour towards the City of Hamilton, adding that a provincial court upheld city hall’s decision to deny advertisements against transgender people on city buses two years ago.

CHCH News reached out to Astral Media, the Bell Media-owned company that IOS contracted to run ads in Hamilton, asking about the approval process of the ad’s content. They’ve yet to respond.

ARPA Canada’s legal counsel says it expects to file its action against the city in the next few weeks.

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