Omar Khadr: A Bleak Mark on Canadian Civil Rights

Abstract

This essay seeks to answer the question “does Omar Khadr’s story represent a failure of multiculturalism or of justice?” While it might be tempting to label the failure to uphold his charter rights as the exception to the rule and that the judiciary has the tools they need to protect the rights of Canadians, this paper argues that is far from the case. Khadr’s treatment is indicative of a prevalent flaw in Canadian multiculturalism, and in the idea of human rights as a whole, which is its reliance on the state to uphold them. Even though the judiciary determined that Khadr’s rights were violated, it was negligence by the state that lead to his prolonged imprisonment in Guantanamo Bay. Ultimately, the state failed to protect Khadr’s rights because he was not seen as a citizen, despite being born and raised in Toronto. This paper draws on Hannah Arendt’s arguments about the inadequacy of citizenship rights, and examines the case of Maher Arar, whose rights have been similarly neglected.