ABSTRACT
In Canada, the implementation of vaccine passports has been controversial. From the outset, critics alleged that vaccine passports would infringe various Charter and human rights protections, including the right to mobility, the right to “life, liberty and security of the person,” the right to equality and the rights to freedom of religion and conscience. Meanwhile, privacy advocates made ominous predictions about the creation of a “show-me-your-papers” society. This chapter systematically explores these critiques, showing that vaccine passports have not, in fact, posed any grave threat to civil liberties or privacy rights. Arguably, this legal and moral alarmism around vaccine passports had the unhelpful effect of discouraging public deliberation in the lead-up to the second wave of the pandemic—forcing governments to scramble with implementation at the eleventh hour. The chapter ends with some reflections on the responsibilities of legal commentators and public intellectuals in the midst of a fast-shifting public health emergency.
