Rights and Freedoms: The Issue of Multiculturalism

On January 25th and February 8th, the Research Chair in Legal Pluralism and Comparative Law invites two exceptional speakers to discuss their experiences and contribution in the field of human rights defence and protection.
On Monday, January 25th, Mindy Pollak will talk about her fight for a more open society and, in particular, her commitment in the community of Outremont as a representative of the interests of the Hasidic community.
On Monday, February 8th, Julius Grey, who has argued a multitude of notable causes involving freedom of religion, will discuss key concepts such as multiculturalism or reasonable accommodation.

• Mindy Pollak: Native to Montreal, Mindy Pollak is a Hasidic Jew and strongly believes in good neighborly relations between citizens. As an elected member of Project Montreal, she wants to make a difference and really bring change to her neighborhood of Outremont, which she cherishes very much. She co-founded the Friends of Hutchison Street, a neighbor association created at the time of holding of a referendum to block a synagogue renovation project on this street. Since then, the Friends of Hutchison Street participated in the Days of Good Neighbors several times (on St. Viateur) and held two public meetings to create positive relationships between the communities of Outremont. Prior to her election, Ms. Pollak also sat as a citizen on the Committee on inter-community relations in Outremont. This committee evaluates and makes recommendations to the various stakeholders of the administration.

• Julius Grey: Prof. Julius Grey, a law professor at McGill for over 20 years, taught, among other things, constitutional law, administrative law and immigration law. He was president of the Canadian Human Rights Foundation (today’s Equitas) from 1985 to 1988. He has argued a multitude of notorious cases, including a challenge to Bill 101 and the famous case of wearing the kirpan in public schools. In 2004, he received the Medaille du Barreau, which is the highest distinction given by the Barreau du Quebec to a lawyer and which emphasized his remarkable professional contribution in the field of justice. In 2015 he received a distinction from the Commission des droits de la personne et des droits de la jeunesse, for his exemplary lifelong commitment to human rights.

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