The kid who wouldn’t give up his kirpan

Gurbaj Singh Multani is just playing basketball when the ceremonial dagger that symbolizes his Sikh faith falls onto the playground of his Montreal school. The next thing the 11-year-old knows, his principal is giving him an ultimatum: hand over his kirpan, a symbol of his Sikh faith, or leave school. This week, This is Montreal shares this episode of the CBC podcast See You in Court. Host Falen Johnson and journalist Sonali Karnick take us through the case of Multani v Commission scolaire Marguerite-Bourgeoys. It sparks a heated public debate over multiculturalism in post 9/11 Quebec, with grown-ups hurling slurs at the tween, and ends with a landmark ruling for religious freedoms in Canada. 

Check out more episodes of See You in Court