The newest civil libertarian cause

Maclean's is reporting that an Ohio imam, who is about to be deported on terrorism-related charges, is eyeing Canada as a potential destination:

Damra, who is the imam, or spiritual leader, at the Islamic Center of Cleveland, immigrated to the United States in the mid-1980s.

In his criminal trial last year, prosecutors showed video footage of Damra and other Islamic leaders raising money for an arm of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad, which has been listed as a major terrorist group by the State Department since 1989.

Jurors also were shown footage in which Damra called Jews "the sons of monkeys and pigs" during a 1991 speech and said "terrorism and terrorism alone is the path to liberation" in a 1989 speech.

U.S. District Judge James Gwin sentenced the cleric to two months in prison and four months in home detention and stripped him of his U.S. citizenship. Damra served the prison time from November 2004 to January of this year.

I have no doubt that this man will not be allowed to live in Canada. However, what is less likely would be the civil libertarians agreeing with that decision. They'll say that Canada is losing its identity and is just following Washington's directives in the war on terror. They'll say that the spirit of the Charter dictates that we should allow this guy the right to settle here and start anew. They'll ask what happened to Canadian values.

Can't you just see it now?