Senator Ataullahjan: Senator Plett, we heard on the floor of this chamber that if someone feels that their account was wrongfully frozen, they could always go to court. I don’t know if you can answer this question, but how easy would it be to go to court for a layman who doesn’t have an understanding of his rights, who doesn’t know what options are available for him and who might not have the means? What do I say to someone who calls me and asks, as a racialized person or someone who has a racialized name and might not have that great a command of the English language? Do I tell them to go to court?

I don’t know if you have the answer, because I didn’t have an answer.

Senator Plett: Thank you, Senator Ataullahjan. Let me just suggest — and I don’t know all the facts about the court challenges that some of the protesters face — but one of the lead organizers, the lady who was one of the organizers, had her bail denied. When they were arguing bail, the courts were told that their bank account was frozen, so they don’t even have the means of hiring a lawyer. Most lawyers in the country that I know are not in their line of work because they are missionaries; they are in their line of work because they plan on making money and expect you to pay the bill. So if your bank account is frozen, senator, you would have a hard time getting a good lawyer to defend you, I would think.

Therefore, no, I don’t have the answer; I’m sorry. But certainly the first call would be to hire the best lawyer possible, and the best lawyer possible with no money wouldn’t be great.