Bruce Douville is working on an essay about the 1979 blasphemous libel charges laid against a local cinema manager for daring to screen the Monty Python film ‘Life of Brian’
A local religious historian is digging into a controversial incident that took place in the Sault several decades ago.
According to the Sault Ste. Marie Public Library, Reverend Michael Eldred, an Anglican priest from Richards Landing, levelled private charges of blasphemous libel against a local cinema and its manager for airing the British comedy in November 1979. The controversial case ultimately never made it to trial, as charges were withdrawn against the movie manager in January 1980, two months after they were laid.“To go two months between November and January, wondering if you were going to be convicted for blasphemous libel, what impact is this going to have on your freedom, job, life, finances?" he says. "I can only imagine it must have been a horrible and dark time for the movie manager.
In May 2021, Douville presented his research as part of a conference hosted by the University of Toronto called "Between Postwar and Present Day: Canada, 1970-2000, Local, National, Global." Douville believes the events stemming from the Sault’s cinema are still significant today, especially after last week's near-fatal attack on award-winning author Salman Rushdie in New York.
Douville explains that freedom of expression specified by the Charter of Rights and Freedoms is an important pillar to our society, especially in cases like the Monty Python film and the localized fallout that resulted in national attention.
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