High schoolers burn bibles to protest Catholic activist in Calgary

The teens only stopped trying to set the books alight after being reminded by someone else in the crowd that the city's fire advisory was still in place, opting instead to tear them apart by hand.

In the footage, Alexander can be seen distributing Bibles to the students, who immediately begin destroying them. One, who sported colored hair, painted nails, and an anime t-shirt, pulled out a lighter and held it up to the corner of the book, causing it to briefly catch on fire.

"That's not cool," someone said. "That's not very nice."

"It's kind of sick as f*ck," the student replied, holding the burning Bible.

Another person in the crowd reminded them that there was a fire advisory in Calagry, prompting the student to distinguish the flame, throwing the Bible on the ground and giving it a stomp for good measure.

According to a notice posted on May 16 by the city of Calgary, "citizens are asked to use extra caution and avoid the use of open flames, fire pits and campfires whenever possible" as wildfires continue to wreak havoc on the surrounding areas.

Unable to set the books on fire, the students resorted to tearing them apart by hand, gleefully ripping up the text and tossing the remnants on the ground.

During the protest, Alexander was apprehended, handcuffed, and put in a police car while officers explained to him that he had allegedly been causing a disturbance and provoking violence. They informed him that he would be arrested if he returned to the scene.

Footage shows numerous students assaulting Alexander as he made his way through the crowd, and according to the activist, some were eventually arrested.

While there are no laws in Canada explicitly prohibiting the burning of religious documents, the students' actions caused outrage among many who saw it as a moral evil.