Dialogue on Human Rights

Scientific outreach on human rights to empower the population.

What is the Dialogue on Human Rights Project?

The Dialogue on Human Rights project, funded by the Fonds de recherche du Québec (FRQ) through the Dialogue program (2024-2025), aims to bridge the gap between scientific communicators—specifically, the next generation of law students—and various segments of the Quebec population. The project equips individuals with knowledge about the mechanisms for protecting their fundamental rights and seeking reparations in cases of violations.

Fonds de recherche du Québec

Project Objectives

This educational project has two objectives: (1) train the next generation of students in scientific communication methods that will enable them to mobilize the results of their research with the general public; (2) promote the empowerment of the Quebec population by facilitating their access to law and justice through activities that mobilize knowledge of fundamental rights in a way that is popularized, and therefore understandable to the general public.

Activities and Content

Through various planned activities, the general public will have the opportunity to engage in dialogue with emerging legal scholars about their fundamental rights. In this context, the student team is developing a range of visual legal education materials—including podcasts, video capsules, infographics, and quizzes—which are used in educational activities within schools and community organizations during the Winter 2025 term.

What Are
Human Rights?

Human rights are a specific category of rights. They are inalienable and universal, inherent to every human being regardless of gender, age, national or ethnic origin, religion, disability, or any other personal characteristic as prescribed by law. Human rights ensure that every individual has the right to live in dignity, by governing relationships between individuals, their interactions with governments, and the obligations of governments toward them.

What Is Discrimination?

Discrimination is the result of not respecting a person's right to equality. According to the Government of Quebec, the right to equality is defined as:

"A fundamental right that guarantees every person fair treatment in the recognition and application of their rights, without discrimination."

Discrimination occurs when an individual or group is excluded from certain rights or services based on personal characteristics such as gender or religion. This creates, directly or indirectly, an exclusion, preference or distinction between the treatment of that individual or group and the treatment of others. For example, denying same-sex couples access to parental insurance constitutes discrimination.

In some cases, differentiated treatment known as affirmative action (or positive discrimination) may be permitted. This type of measure aims to improve the situation of disadvantaged individuals. For instance, benefits may be granted to employees living with a disability to help or encourage them to work.

How to Establish the Existence of Discrimination?

Three criteria are used to establish the existence of discrimination in a particular case. A violation of the right to non-discrimination is established when the actions of a person or a local or political entity (through laws, policies, practices, ...) create (1) a distinction between an individual or a group to which he or she belongs (actually or presumably) and other individuals or groups of individuals, (2) on the basis of one or more of the prohibited grounds of discrimination, and (3) this distinction prevents this person or group from fully exercising their rights and freedoms.

Discrimination Can Be Direct or Indirect

Discrimination is considered direct when the differentiated treatment is explicitly evident in the actions of an individual or entity. For example, a law that explicitly excludes men from receiving parental benefits constitutes direct discrimination.

What Is Indirect Discrimination?

Indirect discrimination occurs when differentiated treatment results from the consequences of an action, even if the action initially appears neutral. For example, a workplace policy requiring employees to work long hours without flexibility may seem neutral at first glance. However, in practice, it may disproportionately disadvantage individuals with caregiving responsibilities, such as single parents or family caregivers—who are often women.

The Link Between the Grounds and the Discriminatory Act

In both cases, what matters is the link between the grounds and the discriminatory act—the grounds must have been the cause of the discriminatory action. For example, if a pregnant woman is dismissed because of her pregnancy, this constitutes discrimination, as the pregnancy was the determining factor behind the action. However, if her dismissal is based on unsatisfactory job performance unrelated to her pregnancy, it would not necessarily be considered discrimination.

Discrimination: Intent Does Not Change the Outcome

It is important to note that discrimination does not need to be intentional to be recognized as such. An individual or a local or political entity cannot justify an action by claiming good faith or asserting that there was no intent to discriminate. What matters above all are the consequences of the act and its impact on the individuals affected.

A Discriminatory Act Does Not Need to Be Generalized

If you experience discrimination based on a personal characteristic or because you belong to a particular group, the discriminatory act does not need to be systematically committed against all individuals sharing that characteristic or belonging to that group.

For example, if a person is discriminated against because of their skin colour, it is not necessary for all individuals with the same skin colour to face the same discrimination for that person’s right to non-discrimination to be considered violated.