Community leaders say they feel that government and public sentiment is now on their side

PARIS — For Jews, France has always been a country of paradoxes. On one hand, it freed them from Europe's historic bondage of religious and cultural oppression. On the other, France has been unable to unshackle itself from the chains of antisemitism.

I'm here in Paris shooting a documentary about Jewish life in a country that has seen a high number of violent antisemitic attacks.

"We see it as our duty and in our interest to fight antisemitism because it ensures and strengthens the continuation of French democracy and the promotion of human rights," said Yonathan Arfi, president of the Jewish community's most influential political organization, the Conseil Représentatif des Institutions Juives de France. "We understand the weight of our heritage and responsibility."

In his office hang pictures of the trial of Alfred Dreyfus, the French army captain who was wrongly convicted of treason and publicly humiliated because he was a Jew (he was later vindicated).

Everywhere you go in Paris, the echos of the past are carried by the living Jewish community. In the Great Synagogue of Paris, Rabbi Moshe Sebbag pointed to the fact that Dreyfus was married in the synagogue and, not long after, Theodor Herzl himself visited and crossed paths with storied Jewish leaders like the Rothschilds and Maurice de Hirsch. 

Their nameplates can still be found on their reserved seats at the front of the synagogue.

The Dreyfus affair inspired Theodor Herzl, who was living in Paris, to imagine and draw up plans for a Jewish state. While the Rothschilds were buying up property in the Holy Land for Jewish refugees, Herzl's famous pamphlet, "The Jewish State," was printed by a member of Sebbag's congregation in the late 1800s.

One month after the establishment of the State of Israel in May 1948, Sebbag's congregation hosted Israel's first president, Chaim Weizmann, for a massive community event to celebrate Israel's independence.

These events hardly register outside France. But the Jewish community lives and breathes the beating heart of history in this place.

The 24-year-old vice-president of the Union of French Jewish Students, Sarah Ouakil, described the challenges Jewish students face on university campuses here. Many are harassed. Some are fearful to wear a yarmulke or other Jewish identification, such as a Star of David. 

There are those who choose to attend private universities, where they feel safer.

In this very place, over 70,000 French Jews were shipped to death camps, such as Auschwitz. Some of them even shared the same last name as me. Yet here we are in 2023 and, despite a minor lull in reported violent antisemitic crimes, Jews have once again gotten used to living in fear.

The murders of Jews at a school in Toulouse in 2012, at the Hypercacher market in 2015 and, most recently, of Sarah Halimi and Mireille Knoll, motivated many Jews to leave. But in the last number of years, community leaders say they feel that government and public sentiment is on their side. After the Charlie Hebdo and Bataclan terror attacks, public sympathy for the Jewish community has grown, according to people I've spoken with here.

"It's no different than anywhere else around the world," said Rabbi Moshe Lewin, a key advisor to the chief rabbi of France and vice-president of the Conference of European Rabbis. This might explain why there has been a reduction in the number of Jews leaving France for Israel, after reaching a peak in 2016. "We are back to normal levels of emigration," Lewin said.

These are the waves of time the community here has learned to ride. "We would not have built this massive community building," said Lewin of Paris' new European Jewish Center, "if we did not believe in the future of French Jewry." Arfi concurs: "I would not be raising my children here if I didn't think they had a strong future."

Still, Richard Odier, director-general of Fonds social juif unifié, a Jewish welfare organization, said that, "Doing memorials like the Holocaust is all very well and nice, but we need to address contemporary issues like antisemitism and Islamic radicalism."

It’s the Jewish community that is on the vanguard of fighting hate and intolerance and preserving freedom and democracy. One of the community's quiet heroes, criminal defence lawyer Ilana Soskin, dedicates all her spare time to fighting antisemitism and hate. Her recent trial against four French neo-Nazis who planned violent attacks against Jewish and Muslim institutions ended with significant convictions.

It was a win, in her eyes, for human rights and the preservation of freedom and democracy in France. It was also a demonstration of the renewed commitment on part of the government and French society to fight extremism and hate. And of the strength and determination of the country's Jewish community — a community that has faced much adversity, but is striving to create a better future.

National Post

https://nationalpost.com/opinion/despite-violent-antisemitism-frances-jewish-community-is-thriving

There is a disconnect between understanding the hatred that allowed the Holocaust to happen and the anti-Israel boycotts that have re-energized modern antisemitism

Author of the article:Avi BenloloPublished May 05, 2023  

As an academic and educator in Holocaust studies, I have given much thought over the past couple years to the rising tide of antisemitism, particularly with respect to the so-called progressive left. Despite the increase in violent antisemitism around the world, the left has been unable to draw a parallel between the hatred that led to the Holocaust and its own contemporary behaviour, which is motivating current forms of Jew-hate.

Take, for example, the NDP’s recent call for the federal government to initiate anti-Israel boycotts and take a harsher position against the Jewish state. In a press release, Heather McPherson, the NDP’s foreign affairs critic, demanded a boycott of goods and services produced in Judea and Samaria: “Canada should ban the import of all goods produced specifically in illegal settlements.” (The “settlements,” it should be noted, are Jewish neighbourhoods and are “disputed” not “illegal.”)

What continually astounds to me is the total and utter disconnect between the Nazi’s boycotts of Jews — one of the building blocks leading to the murder of six-million Jewish children, women and men — and the contemporary push for boycotts against Israel, the modern embodiment of the Jewish people. Throughout history, whenever Jews have been targeted, boycotts have always been among the initial salvo, meant to undermine, defame, marginalize and eventually either expel, convert or murder a particular Jewish community.

Similarly, this form of antisemitism has embedded itself into various religious groups, like the United Church of Canada. The church’s Unsettling Goods boycott campaign calls on “United Church people and others to avoid any and all products produced in Israeli settlements.” While the church is promoting boycotts against Jews in Israel, in March, one of its ministers wrote an article on the United Church website arguing that, “Lent can be a powerful time to repent of Christian anti-Judaism and commit to countering antisemitism.”

Truly unbelievable. While on one hand the church is advocating the boycott of Jews in their own homeland, on the other it argues that the “Shoah was a watershed moment in Christian theology. Far too many Christians were complacent or actively supportive. Many theologians took up serious study in relation to Judaism, recognizing how anti-Jewish theology formed the seedbed for antisemitism to flourish.”

In the United Church and in many other “progressive” circles, there is a disconnect between understanding the antisemitism that allowed the Holocaust to happen and the anti-Israel boycotts that have re-energized modern antisemitism. We see the same disconnect in some labour unions. In 2017, for example, the Canadian Union of Public Employees signed a statement issued by the Canadian Labour Congress saying that, “Tactics such as boycotts, divestment and sanctions … can be effective for raising awareness.”

That may be true in some circumstances, but not when it relates to boycotting Jews. One of Adolf Hitler’s first decrees, on April 1, 1933, was to boycott Jewish businesses and professionals. Eventually, that boycott was extended to Jewish book-burning. That led to the gassing of people and burning of bodies. If Holocaust educators are going to defeat modern antisemitism and help people better understand its consequences through the lens of the Holocaust, they need to be much more effective in their delivery.

We should be asking ourselves why antisemitism has exploded despite the volume of Holocaust museums, memorials and education centres around the world. Why is the progressive left increasing its disdain for Jewish people, especially in academia, while extreme-right neo-Nazi movements are gaining strength?

There isn’t one single answer to this fundamental question. But its the job of educators, advocates and activists to more coherently draw immediate parallels between the antisemitic behaviour of then and now. There are few dissimilarities.

My hope is that anyone reading this column, either on the left or the right, will consider these thoughts carefully — not defensively. The traditional framework of Holocaust education must urgently change.

National Post

Avi Abraham Benlolo is the founder and chairman of the Abraham Global Peace Initiative.

https://nationalpost.com/opinion/without-better-holocaust-education-history-will-repeat-itself

Dr. Kuper writes that 'there are those who do not only cross over the line to anti-Jewish hatred but who do so proudly'

Author of the article:Avi Benlolo

Published Dec 16, 2022  •  4 minute read 18 Comments

Around the world, leaders are embarking on unprecedented campaigning to quash the unfathomable spread of antisemitism, but it’s not happening here in Canada. In Washington this week, U.S. President Joe Biden announced the creation of an inter-agency group to counter antisemitism and other forms of racism. At the Vatican, the Pope warned of a worrying reappearance of antisemitism, and in New York, Governor Kathy Hochul announced a US$50 million fund for victims of antisemitism. Even Germany has adopted an action plan against antisemitism that is being described as a milestone, some 80 years after the Holocaust.

But here in Toronto, a new important academic paper published in the Canadian Medical Education Journal by an insider at the Temerty Faculty of Medicine (TFOM) at the University of Toronto (U of T), has yet to mobilize our leaders into some-kind of serious action. Dr. Ayelet Kuper, an associate professor in the department of medicine, spent a year as senior advisor on antisemitism in the faculty. During that time, she detailed an incredible level of antisemitism among her professional colleagues that should warrant an investigation.

Kuper is not an armchair warrior. She is accomplished, meticulous and brings an unprecedented level of credibility. She has published dozens of peer reviewed journal articles on a wide variety of topics related to medical education and social justice in health care.

For those of us who have been battling campus antisemitism, Dr. Kuper’s paper is hardly surprising, despite its revolting revelations. For more than two decades, I have been arguing with the U of T’s leadership about its allowance of hateful events like the so-called “Israeli apartheid week” and the acceptance of various speakers on campus who spread lies and distortion about the Jewish State, and by extension, the Jewish people. I used to have vibrant debates with former U of T President David Naylor about hate speech versus free speech and the danger of anti-Israel propaganda seeping into the institution causing it irreparable harm.

In her paper titled, “Reflections on addressing antisemitism in a Canadian faculty of medicine,” Dr. Kuper discusses “personal experiences as a faculty member and as a clinician (including antisemitism that I personally witnessed or experienced).” In one instance, Dr. Kuper writes that “there are those who do not only cross over the line to anti-Jewish hatred but who do so proudly and perhaps sometimes as the primary goal, hiding behind the Palestinian cause all the while.” Examples provided are far reaching including the purposeful distortion of the term, “Zionism” to infer racism and deter support for Israel; assuming, falsely, that a substantial donation to the faculty was made by a Jewish donor, simply because he was wealthy, letters and campaigns circulating to undermine pro-Jewish speakers, and accusations that those who stand up to antisemitism are a part of “racist” special interest groups.

Dr. Kuper writes: “I personally experienced many instances of antisemitism, including being told that all Jews are liars; that Jews lie to control the university or the faculty or the world, to oppress or hurt others, and/or for other forms of gain; and that antisemitism can’t exist because everything Jews say are lies, including any claims to have experienced discrimination.” For the first time, in a long time, we now have a credible academic paper with damning evidence of antisemitism presented from within a university-faculty setting. The report’s revelations should result in a system-wide actionable plan to investigate and address the problem, but the response has been muted.

The university’s central administration has, so far, been silent. The Faculty of Medicine did issue a condemnation of antisemitism, expressing that “it takes courage to step forward and shine a light on hate. We hear you. We see you and we are with you.” But are these words enough? A better statement would have announced the launching of an internal investigation conducted by an external professional, like a respected retired judge.

The University of Toronto owes us an explanation. It has hardly addressed the recommendations provided by its own working group on antisemitism, which issued its report last December.

Of the eight commitments the university promised to fulfill in combating antisemitism, the university says it has only completed one item. Aside from the working group’s recommendation that Kosher food be provided on all campuses (something so simple yet not implemented), the other seven recommendations primarily deal with setting new policies around racism, inclusion and diversity and hiring new staff — almost none of which has apparently happened.

Sadly, I am very concerned about the future of our nation, particularly given the incredible level of antisemitism on our university campuses, at school boards and now most recently, in our own Parliament and government agencies. Dr. Kuper has courageously given us an important insider account at the highest echelons of the university bureaucracy. This bad behaviour is not only consequential for the Jewish community, but for all Canadians who still remember the sacrifice our nation made while liberating Europe from the Nazis. Lest we forget.

National Post

https://nationalpost.com/opinion/avi-benlolo-silence-as-antisemitism-abounds-at-u-of-t-faculty-of-medicine

The IHRA definition has been endorsed by innumerable nations, municipalities, universities, corporations — even Chelsea Football Club Author of the article:Avi Benlolo Publishing date:Nov 26, 2022 

Here is the inconvenient truth: the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s (IHRA) “working definition” of antisemitism is not polarizing to anyone other than Israel’s detractors and antisemites. This is what I told the Toronto Star’s editors in response to a controversial article they published last week with the headline: “Why the definition of antisemitism has become such a polarizing issue.”

According to Star columnist Shree Paradkar, the IHRA definition itself is “not controversial”. It states that “Antisemitism is a certain perception of Jews, which may be expressed as hatred toward Jews. Rhetorical and physical manifestations of antisemitism are directed toward Jewish or non-Jewish individuals and/or their property, toward Jewish institutions and religious facilities.”

It’s the 11 examples of antisemitism listed in the definition that Paradkar seems to take an issue with. She specifically brings attention to the one example that says, “denying the Jewish people their right to self-determination, e.g., by claiming that the existence of the State of Israel is a racist endeavour.” Israel is not a racist endeavour. So why is Paradkar taking any issue and focusing on this singular example?

The IHRA definition has been adopted by three dozen nations, at least six Canadian provinces and numerous states in the U.S. Hundreds of universities in the U.K. have endorsed the definition and this has extended into the United States. Municipalities like Vancouver, Toronto and Vaughan, corporations and even European soccer leagues have endorsed the definition in order to root out antisemitism. In fact, I participated in a recent ceremony where the Austrian Football Association signed on to the definition, which was adopted by England’s Chelsea Football Club two years ago.

It’s just Canada’s so-called progressive “civil society” that seems to have a hard time accepting goal lines when it comes to racism against the Jews. At the University of Toronto, an entire study was done on the matter, concluding that a tool to understand and regulate antisemitism was not necessary. It would restrict too much speech and that could not be allowed to happen — especially criticism of the Jews and Israel. Even while Canadian universities have rejected the adoption of IHRA, Paradkar still contends “the IHRA definition has already served to chill academic freedoms.” How can that even be?

To my knowledge, no other definition of racism has endured as much controversy or scrutiny recently as the IHRA antisemitism definition. No other tool that is meant to fight hate has actually resulted in more hate against the victimized group it was meant to protect. Just last week, the City of Vancouver finally adopted the definition, after an intensive campaign by left-wing pro-Palestinian voices.

Its detractors say they are concerned with its supposed limitations on free speech. But there are no limitations and the definition is not legally binding. Those who oppose it say they are mainly defenders of defamatory Palestinian campaigns against Israel. The IHRA’s detractors refuse to acknowledge that modern antisemitism is often tied to the Jewish State (eg. Jewish soldiers being called Nazis). They accuse those of us who defend the definition “right-wing” and accusing us of “weaponizing antisemitism” in order to defend Israel. This is meant to undermine our efforts to protect ourselves against hate.

In her article, Paradkar quotes a Rabbi that said the definition is used to “deny employment, to reject proposals, to stop funding, to shut down events, to revoke rental agreements, to remove participants from panels and forums and more”. The truth of the matter is that the protesters who say this are the same ones blocking the entrance to the Israeli consulate, supporting the denounced boycott campaign against Israel and causing havoc in unions and universities. They seek to rid us of IHRA to perpetuate more of this bad behaviour.

It’s game on when it comes to scrutinizing the victimization of the Jewish people and questioning why this particular definition of antisemitism is considered polarizing despite its wide international acceptance. When was the last time any progressive contested, questioned or protested a definition of discrimination against any other community? Antisemitism may be unique, but no one other than the Jewish community has any right to define our pain and our history. No one.

In the Jewish community, we have become used to deniers of all kinds. These are people who attempt to deny our rights and historical memory. In the case of the IHRA definition, it’s often the same people who call for universal rights and freedoms who oppose those very same rights for the Jewish people, particularly as they define their relationship with the State of Israel. There are exceptions of course but on the whole, the IHRA definition is not “polarizing” to anyone other than those who either lack an historical understanding or are with an agenda to exacerbate the problem of hate and defame the Jewish state.

National Post

Avi Benlolo is the founder and chairman of the Abraham Global Peace Initiative.

https://nationalpost.com/opinion/avi-benlolo-definition-of-antisemitism-only-polarizing-to-israels-detractors

Celebrities are finally coming out and taking a stand against antisemitism — but why are they mostly Jewish? Like racism generally, antisemitism is everyone’s problem. Last week, I wrote about Barbra Streisand’s response to the “Jewish-Free-Zones” at Berkeley. She rhetorically wondered “when does anti-Zionism bleed into broad antisemitism?” But Kanye (AKA Ye) West wasn’t listening. A few days later, all hell broke loose in Hollywood when he tweeted that he was “going death con 3 on Jewish people.” Say what?

Defcon 3 means “increase in force readiness above normal readiness.” Referring to nuclear weapons, it would be used in situations that may not pose immediate danger but warrant a significant alert. This rhetoric is in line with the rhetoric we often hear from white supremacist groups and alludes to a position of violence. Given Kanye’s 30 million Twitter followers, his words can have a significant impact. Some unbalanced individuals may see them as a call to arms and take action.

David Schwimmer, who is Jewish, was one of the few celebs who eloquently denounced Ye. He retorted, “his hate speech calls for violence against Jews. If you interpret his words any other way and defend him, guess what? You are racist.” Schwimmer is right, people need to choose important paths these days: They can be an upstander or a bystander. “If we don’t call someone as influential as Kanye out for his divisive, ignorant and anti-semitic words, then we are complicit. Silence is complicity” Schwimmer said.

Indeed, too many people are silent these days. We saw the same thing happen just before the Holocaust. And why is it mainly (but not only) Jews who speak out publicly against antisemitism? Soon after Kanye’s tweet, Jewish comedian Sarah Silverman said, “Kanye threatened the Jews yesterday on twitter and it’s not even trending. Why do mostly only Jews speak up against Jewish hate? The silence is so loud.” Metaphorically speaking, it feels like the silence Jews felt from their neighbours as they were led out of town by the Nazis.

Jamie Lee Curtis who is of Jewish descent said she “woke up and burst into tears” when she read Kanye’s tweet. “Death con 3 on Jewish people? What are you doing? It’s bad enough that fascism is on the rise around the world, but on Twitter? On a portal to pour that in as if Jewish people haven’t had it hard enough?” Celebrity attention to this evil scourge is important now more than ever. But is it enough and are enough speaking out?

In his direct and appropriate reply on Instagram, Schwimmer eloquently reminded Kanye and the public that “Jews make up only 2.4 per cent of the population of the United States but are the victims of more than 60 per cent of all religious hate crimes.” The same is true of Canada and most European nations. While Jewish people are a small minority, they suffer the brunt of religious discrimination.

Antisemitism is a pernicious hatred that spans from Abraham our forefather. By refusing idolatry — the dominant form of religion at the time — he had become a minority, thus separating himself and soon his family and his tribe from the majority. It was antisemitism that brought upon Jewish enslavement in Egypt and it was antisemitism that brought the destruction of both Jewish temples in Jerusalem. We were then accused and vilified for deicide and this brought on 2,000 years of persecution culminating in the Holocaust.

As it turns out, for some it’s hard to shake off 2,000 years of hating another religious group. The stereotypes, conspiracy theories and lies continue to infect people like a virus from generation to generation. Somehow, we have to break this vicious cycle. Global stress and turmoil give rise to antisemitic conspiracy theories. In the second part of his Twitter rant, Kanye said: “You guys have toyed with me and tried to black ball anyone whoever opposes your agenda.” This plays into almost any anti-Jewish conspiracy theory that alleges that we have some kind of agenda to control the world. I assure you, we have no such plan to take over the world.

I would like to extend a hand to Kanye and invite him to join me on my upcoming visit to Auschwitz. Having taken people in similar situations in the past and given them the benefit of the doubt thereby focusing greater attention on education, I have found the impact on them and the people they influence to be substantial. There is a healing process that can take place when things like this happen and yes, I dare say, a level of forgiveness when sincere understanding happens. I hope Kanye takes my hand.

For the first time in history, more celebrities are speaking out against antisemitism including Ariana Grande, John Legend, Jack Antonoff and Piers Morgan among others. But after years of rising hate against Jewish students on university campuses, politicians who have viciously attacked Israel and even so-called human rights organizations and United Nation agencies that have targeted the Jewish state, should we be surprised Jew-hate is becoming mainstream?

https://nationalpost.com/opinion/avi-benlolo-kanye-wests-dangerous-antisemitism

National Post

Avi Abraham Benlolo is the Founding Chairman and CEO of The Abraham Global Peace Initiative, www.agpiworld.com.

New U of T courses examine 'colonialism' and 'occupation' in a Palestinian state that doesn't actually exist Author of the article:Avi BenloloPublishing date:Sep 09, 2022  •  4 hours ago  •  4 minute read 

So this week I was called a “Zionist lowlife” on Twitter because I dared condemn the false labelling of Israel as an “apartheid state” at our universities. It turns out that brainwashed “social-justice warriors” have been out in force on campuses, turning their anger on democratic Israel rather than the terrorist groups that are the true oppressors of Gaza and the West Bank — Hamas and the Palestinian Islamic Jihad.

None of these campus charlatans made a peep about Hamas resurrecting medieval times this week when it hung five of its own citizens in Gaza. It seems that students who peddle anti-Israel “Boycott” and “Apartheid” stickers are in serious need of an education. A “free Palestine” would only be free without the religious and militant radicalism imposed by Hamas and the corruption facilitated by the Palestinian Authority.

In the Palestinian territories, women’s rights are frowned upon, being gay can get you imprisoned or executed, and peacefully criticizing the authorities can get you arrested, tortured or murdered (as was the case with Fatah critic Nizar Banat a year ago). It’s hard to fathom why students or university faculty would want any association with this movement. The only rationale is that they do not subscribe to our western ideal of human rights, or that their antisemitism is so intense that they become blind to the truth about the terrorism they are shielding.

Why would anyone want to side with a movement that demeans and defames another group of people? The antisemitic remarks made by the “anti-racism” consultant hired by Heritage Canada, should make anyone with an ounce of decency run the other way: “You know all those loud mouthed bags of human feces, aka the Jewish White Supremacists; when we liberate Palestine and they have to go back to where they come from, they will return to being low voiced bitches of thier (sic) Christian/Secular White Supremacist Masters.”

Unfortunately, we learned this week that on at least one Canadian campus, an education that even attempts to explore truth and justice is beyond the realm of pedagogy.

For years, the University of Toronto’s administration condemned antisemitism and even distanced itself from the so-called Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions campaigns, despite intense pressure. But the propaganda promoted for nearly 20 years at the infamous “Israeli Apartheid Weeks,” for which U of T is shamefully the birthplace, has now seeped into courses offered by the university. At least two courses effectively erase the State of Israel from their description, thus effectively institutionalizing the very same sentiments espoused by such groups as Hamas and the Muslim Brotherhood.

The Jewish community has been invested in the University of Toronto for nearly a century. Many of its buildings are named after Jewish philanthropists, while thousands of its Jewish alumna have funded programs and teach on its faculty. How then can the university stoop this low by offering a course that says it’s going to examine “a century of oppression, violence, resistance and solidarity within, across and beyond Palestine”?

The outline for the “Rethinking Palestine” course says it will examine such concepts as “colonialism” and “occupation,” while completely omitting mention of Israel, despite the fact there is no Palestinian state and there never has been. The Palestinians have neatly woven this narrative into academia, pretending there once was a State of Palestine where Israel stands today.

And if this course wasn’t enough of an embarrassment to academia and the pursuit of knowledge, a second course, “Modern Palestine,” is even cruder. It pretends a Palestinian state exists and aims to give “an overview of the political struggles over Palestine between Zionist and Palestinian national movements.” Here is the truth: had the Palestinians accepted the UN partition plan in 1948 and at least three or four other offers thereafter, the Palestinians would be enjoying the benefits of their own state right now.

Instead, universities have been willingly co-opted to tell the lies being peddled by radical groups that have no shame in calling people names (eg. Zionist lowlife) and continue to push the agendas of terror groups here in Canada. Academic enablers of this unfolding tragedy on our campuses would never for a second be able to practice their professions in any of the Palestinian territories for lack of rights and freedom. Yet, they are perfectly OK with joining in this propaganda and with it, attempting to harm the only democracy in the Middle East.

Dismantling democracies is bad for democracies. If universities can write a new narrative this easily, based on a campaign originating from a foreign entity that does not share our freedom and democracy, can you imagine how fragile our own nation might be? Now they are attacking Israel, but who will they come for next? Whose values, beliefs and history will they attempt to re-write or distort? There is a battle of ideas raging on our campuses. It’s time for us all to fight back.

National Post

https://nationalpost.com/opinion/avi-benlolo-university-of-toronto-succumbs-to-anti-israel-propaganda

Here is the bottom line: to win the war against antisemitism, we must build an Abrahamic tent that brings people together who share the same values of peace and respect.  

So when a Colombian police officer asked to take a picture with me for her mother who is a big supporter of Israel, of course I readily agreed. This work is people-to-people direct relationship building that can break down barriers of prejudice. With only about 4,000 Jewish people left in Colombia of a country of 50 million, we are a small minority in this vast land.  

The same happened when I plugged my phone into the police car on the way to give a Holocaust and antisemitism presentation at the National Police College in Bogota, one of my favourite Israeli songs accidentally started playing. 

The Colombian police officer turned up the tune, rolled down his windows and danced to the music. “This is really good, he said.” We may have not been able to speak the same language, but we spoke the language of humanity.  

During my meeting with Maria Gutierrez, Colombia’s Director of Human Rights and International Humanitarian Law at the Foreign Ministry, I noticed she was wearing a Magen David necklace (Star of David). She is not Jewish she said, but her faith brings her to this connection as a matter of normalcy it seemed. Still, we discussed some of the harsh concerns about Colombia’s reported crackdown on human rights defenders among other issues.  

A strong religious connection coupled with a Stephen Harper like president has changed the equation. President Iván Duque has embraced Israel more than any other nation in Latin America, thus strengthening Colombia’s connection with the Jewish people. Many will be sad to see him go in a few weeks when his term ends.  

All this is why the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the National Police Force insisted that the Abraham Global Peace Initiative come to educate their officers about the Holocaust and antisemitism. They were severely embarrassed by an antisemitic incident from their own rank and file.  Last November, a group of police cadets uncharacteristically held a Nazi themed event in which they donned Nazi uniforms with Swastikas and one cadet carried a Hitler-style moustache. 

An embarrassed president apologized for what became an international incident — covered by mainstream media. We offered to provide Holocaust education. Colombia agreed and invited us to train senior commanders.  The incident itself was seemingly borne out of ignorance. Holocaust education and awareness is nearly non existent, which is why Israel’s deputy consul general in Bogota told me she is spearheading a program for schools alongside the Jewish community.  

“Have you ever heard about the ‘Holocausto'”? I asked at the beginning of my presentation to hundreds of officers. Only one raised his hand. But when asked if they recognized the photo of Adolf Hitler that I posted on the screen, 90 per cent knew who he was. But did they know what he did? Apparently not so much.  You could see their body language and facial expression change once they learned about the six-million murdered Jewish children, women and men. 

The discussion about white-supremacist ideology left them in shock and horror as they realized Hitler’s plan went beyond Jewish people. For policing especially, the connection of Nazi ideology with the recent shootings in the United States and “replacement theory” brought home the past and present threat of race-motivated violence.  

In Colombia however, antisemitism is reportedly remarkably low in comparison to most other places, Israel’s capable Ambassador Christian Cantor told me in a briefing at the embassy. Unlike Chile for example, Cantor said there was very little anti-Israel related antisemitism like the infamous BDS campaign. This may change should leftist presidential candidate Gustavo Petro comes to power, 

Cantor suggested  President Duque has built an admirable pro-Israel legacy. He has been among Israel’s staunchest allies, visiting the nation and visiting the Western Wall and Yad Vashem to pay his respects. Since then, he established an economic mission in Jerusalem and increased trade. Last week, he signed Colombia up to the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance working definition of antisemitism.  

But everyone is anticipating a shift in politics and policy depending on who gets elected as Colombia’s next president. Petro’s opponent Rudolfo Hernandez is likened to Donald Trump, and both are unpredictable vis-a-vis Israel and the future of Colombia itself, which is increasingly polarized.  

The opportunity to meet with young up and coming diplomats at the foreign ministry left me with a feeling of hope for this very complicated country. We discussed democracy, human rights and civil society. They are Colombia’s great future.  Like anywhere else, for the Jewish community, its future is tied to its safety and security. 

After years of attrition, this proud Zionist community seems to be reaching comfortable stability. Time will tell.  For now, we continue to build a big global tent of friends. The national police force has begun integrating Holocaust education into its curriculum and has greater awareness about the impact of antisemitism. Mission Accomplished.  

Avi Abraham Benlolo is the founder and chairman of the Abraham Global Peace Initiative.  National Post

https://nationalpost.com/opinion/avi-benlolo-colombia-a-fierce-ally-in-the-fight-against-antisemitism

Avi Benlolo: It's time to replace white nationalists' conspiracy of hate The mainstreaming of the 'great replacement theory' not only threatens minority groups, but society itself  Author of the article :Avi Benlolo Publishing date: May 20, 2022  

America is in trouble. The horrific mass shooting in Buffalo last Saturday added another layer of hate and racial division to a nation once dubbed a “melting pot” of differing ethnicities. No more. In a racially motivated shooting spree, a white gunman specifically targeted the Black community — unleashing 50 rounds of bullets in the Tops Supermarket. Shockingly, he murdered 10 Black people in cold blood — six females and four males ranging from the age of 32 to 86.

 What motivated the 18-year-old suspect to unleash violence on his fellow citizens? Authorities indicate it was the same white-nationalist sentiment that also led to mass shootings in 2018 at the Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh and in 2019 at Chabad of Poway. A total of 12 Jewish worshippers were murdered in those attacks by two lone male gunmen motivated by a white-nationalist racist ideology known as “replacement” theory.  

It’s not the theory itself that is mainstreaming from the fringe, as many commentators have contended in recent days. It’s that white supremacism itself is mainstreaming, growing in numbers and accelerating the threat to such minority groups as Black and Jewish people and to America itself. A racist screed reportedly posted online by the Tops supermarket suspect outlined the so-called “great replacement” theory — a white-nationalist belief in a conspiracy to diminish the power and influence of white people and in effect, replace them in America.  

One might argue that America has always had a massive racial divide going all the way back to slavery. Henry Ford himself capitalized on antisemitism and convinced millions of Americans that Jewish people were out to control the world. Ford published a series of pamphlets in the 1920s arguing that the “international Jew” was “the world’s foremost problem,” thereby unleashing hateful conspiracy theories that accused Jewish people of everything from agricultural depression to strikes and financial manipulation. This screed would strengthen white-nationalist belief systems, particularly as Nazi ideology began taking hold.

  White-nationalists take their inspiration from Nazism — the original ideology pursuing racial supremacy for a white, so-called “Aryan race.” The Nazis’ plan was to ethnically cleanse all minority and racial groups including the Jewish and Black communities — whom they described as inferior races. The Old Testament of America’s white-nationalist movement might be Hitler’s racist screed Mein Kampf, but the movement’s New Testament is “The Turner Diaries.” Published in 1978, it’s a fictional novel written by William Luther Pierce about a violent race-motivated revolution in America in which whites exterminate non-whites.  

Although white nationalists have a long laundry list of hate, Black and Jewish communities are their prime targets. America realized it was asleep at the wheel when in 2017, white nationalists marching at Charlottesville, Va., chanted “Jews will not replace us!” and “You will not replace us!” We were all still trying to figure out what they meant. Who would want to replace such vile people anyway?  

Since Charlottesville, there have been at least three violent white-supremacist attacks on American soil. Similar international mass murders took place in Norway at a summer camp in 2011 in which 77 people were murdered; at a Quebec mosque in 2017 when six Muslim worshippers were killed; and in Christchurch, New Zealand, in 2019, when 51 Muslim worshippers were murdered. It’s no wonder that intelligence agencies including the FBI in America and CSIS in Canada have reportedly placed white-nationalist movements high on their threat lists.  T

he Black, Jewish and Muslim communities have all been victims of violent racism and prejudices and need to be unified, not divided, in order to protect themselves. It’s time for all minority groups to have empathy and call out hate against others. More importantly, the majority must stand with them and against the mainstreaming of the replacement theory, which threatens not only minority groups, but society itself.  National Post

https://nationalpost.com/opinion/avi-benlolo-its-time-to-replace-white-nationalists-conspiracy-of-hate

03/25/22: Statistics Canada released a damning report about hate crime in Canada, but despite the fact the Jewish community was the most targeted religious group, and antisemitic attacks were the second most common overall, Canadian media seemed to have brushed aside this significant piece of information. Its been just under one year since the vicious assaults on Jews by pro-Palestinian demonstrators took place over Gaza's war with Israel. Hamas attacked Israel by shooting rockets at Israeli cities indiscriminately — a war-crime by any measure.

Still, pro-Palestinian demonstrators took to the streets across the country — sometimes violently clashing with counter protesters. In Toronto, Montreal and other cities, Jewish and other pro-Israel demonstrators were attacked. Jewish youth and students were targeted by their peers on social media for being Jewish supporters of Israel.

While it may seem like distant memory now given the horrific scenes playing out in Ukraine, Holocaust distortion has become rampant across this country. We have lost count of how many protests took place where demonstrators shamefully wore the Yellow Star of David to protest anti-vaccine measures. Vaccines are meant to save lives. The Yellow Stars of David that Jews were forced to wear were used by the Nazis to identify them for murder in gas chambers.

COVID brought out the worst in antisemitism across Canada. But instead of making headlines following dramatic evidence provided by Statistics Canada, our media is playing this down. A report from the Canadian Press published in this very paper three paragraphs from the bottom stated, "the Jewish and Muslim populations continue to be the most common targets of religion-based hate crimes, it says." The same article and statement also appeared on the same date in at least four other mainstream publications, including the CBC.

A three second review of Statistics Canada's simple to read graphs and charts show that the Jewish community is the most targeted religious group for hate crimes in this country. More significantly, it is the only religious group to experience an increase of hate crimes by five per cent in 2020 over the previous year. Most notably and significantly, the Muslim community cited in the report experienced a 55 per cent decrease in police reported-hate crime. All other targeted religious groups also experienced a decrease in hate crime including the Catholic community.

Hate is hate and we should not tolerate even one incident against any group. It is scandalous that hate crime in this country increased by 37 per cent. The numbers are absolutely embarrassing for a country that prides itself on equity and diversity. Race-based hate crime increased by 80 per cent with 301 per cent against East and Southeast Asian communities, 152 per cent against the Indigenous community and 92 per cent against the Black community. For shame on us all.

The 1,169 incidents in Ontario and 2,669 incidents across the country is likely only the tip of the iceberg. We also know that many incidents are not accounted for in hate crime statistics, with most of them being categorized as "mischief" or "vandalism" because our system makes it easier to press charges this way.

Throughout the years, I have advocated on government panels for increased control of hate speech on the internet, including social media. Service providers must do a better job ensuring that hateful content does not appear on their platforms, or face stiff penalties.

While many continuously look to government for stronger legislation and action oriented task forces, I have come to believe that what we need is to build a moral and ethical society. 

Hate is increasing because our social fabric is wearing thin. We need to start thinking differently and look at new and innovative approaches to combat hate. From our perspective at The Abraham Global Peace Initiative, we are scouring the world and speaking to other activists and educators about new methodologies that will have a dramatic paradigm shift.

For failing to adequately report about Antisemitism, the media is hiding the truth from Canadians. How then can we improve public policy and legislation to combat Jew-hate, if the story is buried? Why then are we surprised when students perform the "Heil Hitler" salute against a Jewish teacher? Recent Antisemitic incidents have shaken our community to the core. Burying critical statistics at the bottom of stories is not the correct path to countering hate and discrimination.

National Post

Avi Abraham Benlolo is the founder and chairman of The Abraham Global Peace Initiative.

A storm of anti-Semitism awaits Jewish and pro-Israel students at colleges and universities this fall. With the Jewish New Year now upon us and students moving into their residences this week, we can expect another year of tension, anxiety and bigotry on campuses. While the Abraham Accords defused and undermined campus extremism last spring, the Hamas war against Israel in May provided renewed imagery with which to bash Israel. We saw this play out on city streets around the world over the summer. Now with an in-person return to campus, extremists will bring their propaganda to the lecture halls.

The hostile climate will no doubt worsen with attempts to boycott and delegitimize the Jewish State. Even as the war with Gaza was raging, extreme leftish campus groups began passing hostile resolutions and statements against Israel. Sadly, many of these groups believe they are acting in the cause of “social-justice” without fully understanding either the context of the conflict or that Hamas is a radical Islamist terrorist organization — not unlike the Taliban. Either way, this unfounded and radicalized behaviour on campuses ends up victimizing Jewish students and faculty, as it has for the past 20 years.

Of all places, a campus is no place for hate and intolerance. If as a society we are to uphold universal conventions of human rights and freedoms, anti-Semitism must be vehemently rejected and condemned by university administrations and faculty.

Yet, Jewish students are reporting attacks and threats of violence on online forums for standing up for their beliefs and defending Israel. During the height of the Gaza war, social networking sites were replete with hate-filled content against Israel that often pitted friends against friends, and resulted in police reports and allegations of hate speech nearing hate crime. As university groups bashed Israel, Jewish students felt marginalized and silenced by their own university communities. It turns out, free speech on campuses these days travels in one direction only — against the only democracy in the Middle East, Israel.

Despite the fact that Jewish college and university students have a history of rallying behind oppressed groups facing racism and discrimination, the campaign against the Jews manifesting as boycott campaigns and falsehoods like “Israeli Apartheid Week” has been met mostly by silence. Undoubtedly that silence has contributed to the fact that a new Alums for Campus Fairness survey found that nearly 100 per cent of the Jewish American college students polled attested to anti-Semitism and the demonization of Israel on campuses. A whopping 79 per cent of the more than 500 respondents had experienced or heard first-hand about another student making offensive or threatening anti-Semitic comments.

Campus anti-Semitism has undoubtedly contributed to the rising tide of such behaviour throughout society. This week, the FBI revealed that Jews are the target of 58 per cent of all religiously motivated hate crimes in the U.S. despite constituting just two per cent of the population. These numbers are consistent with Canadian and international models of hate crime whereby Jewish communities continue to be the most targeted group even while they are relatively few in numbers. In other words, anti-Semitic bigots are nothing more than schoolyard bullies picking on a minority group.

Universal conventions on education dictate that education should be directed to the full development of the human personality and to the strengthening of respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms. Education, at its core, must promote understanding, tolerance and friendship among all nations, racial or religious groups. Universities and colleges have an obligation under their own mandate to preserve, protect and defend the rights of students and faculty to function freely and without intimidation or feeling of victimization.

Disregard and contempt for historical degradation and violence against the Jewish people, such as anti-Semitism, boycotts and genocide is harmful to the well-being of humanity. Everyone is entitled to the rights and freedoms set forth in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, without distinction of any kind, such as race, colour, sex, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other status. Administrators and educators must uphold these principles for Jewish students in as much as they are upheld for anyone else on campus.

If humanity has learned anything this past year, hopefully it’s to have a total reset, including on university and college campuses. As we approach the Jewish New Year and renew strength and faith, perhaps everyone can come together and draw inspiration from the foundational principles found in the sacred texts of most religions: love thy neighbour; pursue justice; repair the world; do not oppress the stranger and do not stand idly by. These basic human values must underpin the fight against anti-Semitism and intolerance on campuses and in society at large.

Published September 3, 2021 National Post

Post-Holocaust anti-Semitism was primarily disseminated by hate groups utilizing mediums we now deem somewhat archaic, like flyers and graffiti. In some circumstances, as in the case of Germany's Ernst Zundel, they were able to publish pamphlets, utilize phone answering machines and organize gatherings on some far-away farms.

The one-to-one direct recruitment into hate groups during those years now seems equally archaic. It took a considerable amount of effort to inspire, cultivate and introduce a new recruit to a group. For this reason, hate groups — particularly neo-Nazis — were relatively small in number following the Holocaust.

But with today’s postmodern anti-Semitism, inspiration, cultivation and recruitment happens en masse thanks to the spectacular growth of the internet and its social networking sites. In the past two decades, and particularly in the past few years, the world wide web has brought together more people than Hitler himself might have imagined, to promote and facilitate false anti-Semitic narratives that are inspiring dangerous violence.

The Center for Countering Digital Hate (CCDH) released a report this week that charged that social media companies are not acting against anti-Semitism. Even while there has been a dramatic shift in operating guidelines for most social media firms — while under pressure from Jewish communities around the world — CCDH reported a whopping 84 per cent of documented anti-Semitic content was not acted upon. “Tech companies are consciously giving a free pass to anti-Jewish hatred and the increasing threat to the Jewish community,” said the not-for-profit NGO.

Its recommended solutions include having platforms hire and train more moderators to remove hate, and holding these platforms accountable if they fail to remove such comments.

Since 2014, I have argued in these pages and as part of a parliamentary committee that to combat online hate we must hold social media companies accountable. The only way social media operators will become accountable is if they are penalized through fines for non-action in the removal of hateful content. The fact that 84 per cent of anti-Semitic conspiracy theories about 9/11, and outrageous claims that Jewish people are responsible for COVID-19 and control world affairs, are left on social media should outrage civil society.

Ironically, our biggest and most important front against anti-Semitism and all forms of hatred is the internet. For this reason, The Abraham Global Peace Initiative has begun conversation with experts in artificial Intelligence and internet marketing to form a global task force on internet hate. We need to capture the hearts and minds of Silicon Valley to build algorithms and foster creative approaches to striking a blow at hate-mongers.

According to the CCDH, Instagram, TikTok and Twitter allow the usage of hashtags for anti-Semitic content such as #rothschild, #fakejews and #killthejews — all of which have gained over 3.3 million impressions. One is too many. Whereas once a neo-Nazi flyer would get the attention of mostly nobody, today's hate is entering into millions of homes via the internet, infecting children and young adults and thereby creating a new generation of haters.

Germany has recognized this problem and the general growth of anti-Semitism, announcing this week an investment of more than $40 million into researching and finding solutions to the problem. But frankly, we are running out of time.

Every day, there are dozens of reported anti-Semitic incidents around the world. Just this week, England's Tottenham Hotspurs football (soccer) team was “appalled” by radio show hosts who failed to challenge an anti-Semitic comment levelled at the club's Jewish chairman by a caller. In France and Germany, COVID-19 protests have given way to rising extremism and by extension, increased anti-Semitism. And just the other day, a Democratic politician in Ohio who lost a primary race to a rival backed by Jewish party members claimed she "didn’t lose this race" but "evil money manipulated and maligned this election."

More troubling about postmodern anti-Semitism is not merely the online regurgitation of old anti-Semitic canards, but the systematic propaganda campaign to dehumanize Jews as a means of attacking Israel. This justification of anti-Semitism is playing out online and in the media as the public is continuously fed falsehoods. Outrageous false narratives accuse the Jewish people of genocide and apartheid. The distinction between fact and fiction is blurred online as social media algorithms become echo chambers.

These lies and distortions are fast polarizing people into extreme positions, heightening levels of anxiety, animosity, fear and hatred. Whereas Adolf Hitler and his henchmen were able to mobilize millions into evil action through propaganda, the internet can mobilize billions more.

Ahmed Shaheed, the UN Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Religion, warned in a report to the UN General Assembly in 2019 that anti-Semitism is "toxic to democracy.” It poses “a threat to all societies if left unaddressed,” he said. The time for action is now.

07/04/21: Public consternation over proposed legal changes to confront online hate speech is legitimate considering the possibility of abuse. If approved, amendments to the Canadian Human Rights Act and accompanying changes to the Criminal Code and the Youth Criminal Justice Act will fundamentally change how Canadians conduct themselves online. Understandably, in a free and democratic society, maintaining freedom of expression is critical to the very foundation of our national enterprise.

Many argue that curtailing speech and even online behaviour disallows our fundamental rights and freedoms as citizens. To some, it signifies an encroachment of state control reminiscent of tyrannical regimes and even communism. China’s recent harsh clampdown on media and individual expression in Hong Kong points to the danger of state power over rights and freedoms.

The Canadian government’s new “action to protect Canadians against hate speech and hate crimes” would clamp down on individuals who express “detestation or vilification of an individual or group of individuals on the basis of a prohibited ground of discrimination.” This would apply to public communications by individual users on the internet, including on social media, on personal websites and in mass emails.

That effectively means that journalists, writers and social media influencers could be subject to greater scrutiny.

I get it. As a promoter of free speech who is exposed to a daily dose of diverse opinion, my rational self agrees with the late U.S. Supreme Court Justice Louis Brandeis’ contention that “sunlight is said to be the best of disinfectants.” But there are problems with this perspective, too. As a student of the Holocaust, I have observed that anti-semitism is an infectious disease that if left unchecked in the social marketplace will rise to the top of hate and discriminatory practice in almost any society. Sunlight does not disinfect anti-semitism. Sunlight allows anti-semitism to replicate when it’s out in the open.

Statistics Canada reports that the Jewish community is the most targeted religious group for hate crime and hate speech in this country. In 2017, incidents of anti-semitism and hate crime in general increased by a whopping 47 per cent here. In 2019, police recorded 1,946 criminal incidents that were motivated by hate, representing a seven per cent increase from the year previous. Undoubtedly, these figures have increased under cover of the coronavirus pandemic as people have been spending more time online. During the Hamas-israel conflict in May, an online torrent of anti-semitism infected every corner of the planet.

For this reason, when testifying in front of a parliamentary task force about online hate in May 2019, I advocated for a strengthening of our hate-speech and hate -crime laws. As someone who is forwarded regular doses of anti-semitic content from those who have been targeted, I know that over the past two decades, we have seen a steady increase in online anti-semitism and hate against many groups. I doubt few would argue this point.

The Jewish community in particular (but certainly not exclusively) has been victimized online beyond measure: Jewish university students were attacked by their peers for merely identifying themselves as supporters of Israel during the latest conflict. Children of Holocaust survivors relive their parents’ trauma as they see Holocaust denial jokes flash on their screens. The Jewish community feels aghast when a newspaper displays a caricature of an Israeli soldier with his knee on the neck of a Palestinian. Online anti-semitic hate speech is pervasive and commonplace.

Given this reality, I have advocated for the reinstatement of Section 13 to the Canadian Human Rights Act, to return scrutiny and legal ramification for online hate. Over the years, I have encouraged parliamentarians to strengthen our hatespeech laws to prevent what was a foreseeable marketplace that is spreading hate and intolerance at an accelerated rate. For the victims of online hate speech, regulation of the internet gives them a mechanism to challenge abusive behaviour. But operators of social media platforms and internet service providers must be held accountable, too.

For non-victims, the argument for freedom of speech is an honest and rational reaction to the danger of state expansionism. The inevitable abuse of the law by individuals must come with stiff penalties. But put it this way — if it wasn’t for our hate speech laws, the now infamous “Your Ward News” in Toronto would still be publishing its misogynistic and anti-semitic material in print and online. 

If it had been allowed to publish under the notion of free expression, it’s possible other publications would have sprouted up as well. As someone who has been involved in that case since its inception, I am proud that Holocaust survivors and their children no longer need to find this paper on their doorsteps.

There is no place for hate speech — ever. If we are going to build a more compassionate society, we must become more culturally proficient — while still holding true to our core values of freedom, democracy and human rights. Sadly, and although unpopular in many spheres, regulation of hate speech is today more necessary than ever. Yes, this issue is controversial and all sides of the argument have valid concerns. But the silence over anti-semitism in the past few weeks has shown us that legal remedies are necessary.

There is no monopoly on discrimination. In the Jewish world, we have stood up throughout history for freedom and civil rights. Our people have proudly walked with every modern-day liberation movement, including participating in and supporting Martin Luther King Jr. in the civil rights movement, the feminist movement and most recently the LGBTQ2 movement. 

We are proud leaders in the promotion of social welfare policies and legal and ethical rights. Upholding Jewish values, U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, for instance, is fondly remembered for fighting against gender discrimination and became the first tenured female at Columbia Law School.

Despite our concern for others over the centuries however, it has not been matched for the Jewish community in the past couple of weeks. Shockingly, despite the overt anti-Semitism on the streets of North America and Europe, there has been a deafening silence. Jewish people have been assaulted in New York, Los Angeles and Toronto. In Toronto this past weekend, Palestinian protesters carried Hamas flags at their rally, while many held anti-Semitic signs and slogans. One read, “Good Job Israel, Hitler Would be Proud.”

A brick shattered the window of a Kosher pizza parlour in Manhattan. Video captured a swarm of men attacking diners at a Sushi restaurant in Los Angeles, and synagogues are reporting vandalism in places like Arizona, Illinois and New York. As in Toronto, a brawl broke out in Times Square while the Diamond District was also attacked by a gang of pro-Palestinians. Drive-bys consisting of Pro-Palestinian groups have become commonplace in Jewish areas — racially tinged epithets being shouted at young Jewish children and adults alike.

Worse, over the past number of days, my phone has been ringing off the hook and messages have been pouring in from staff at corporations and school boards who have a growing sense of fear and discomfort in their institutions. They are shocked by the silence of their peers and colleagues whom they have worked with for years to promote equity for other groups within their institutions. 

But now, when anti-Semitism is at an all-time high, when they are being personally targeted on the street and their freedoms seem constrained, they wonder why there is silence. Why have their institutions not unequivocally condemned anti-Semitism, period?

Condemnation of anti-Semitism is not a political matter. It is an anti-discrimination matter. One local school board completely convoluted the matter in a memo that tried to reassure its staff about the Israel-Palestinian conflict. Instead, it ostracized its Jewish staff and probably inflamed passions further by saying in reference to the conflict that it is “committed to working from anti-racist, anti-oppressive and anti-colonial frameworks.” 

Effectively, it politicized the institution and possibly legitimized anti-Semitism by falsely accusing Israel of being a racist, oppressive, colonial state. Naturally, this has put its employees and students on edge and pitted them against each other.

This is the time for leaders to step up and publicly defend their Jewish friends and neighbours. First and foremost, all public and private institutions must issue statements condemning anti-Semitism while providing guidelines for appropriate conduct and communication. Second, authorities, including law enforcement and the attorney general, must thoroughly investigate and if necessary charge people who promote hate speech and are found to have committed hate crimes. 

The fact that some Jewish neighbourhoods are setting up their own security systems above and beyond our public law enforcement services may be indicative that public needs are not being entirely met. Finally, faith-based organizations and friends of the Jewish community must speak out against anti-Semitism and visibly extend a hand.

Article I of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights proclaims that “all human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood.” We are all equal and must strive to advance human rights for all people. 

There is no shortage of pain and suffering on our small planet and unfortunately, we are seeing an upward global trend of inequality, racism and discrimination. Together, we must stand to uplift all who are suffering, including the Black and Asian communities and persecuted peoples like the Uyghurs, Tibetans and Rohingya.

And yes, in the coming days and weeks, we need to see some outrage against anti-Semitism. I am calling on my friends outside of the Jewish community to stand up and speak out.

Few disagree that while we have been on the brink of global disaster during the COVID-19 pandemic, our post-pandemic world offers new hope and new opportunities.

Figuratively, the reopening of the world can be likened to a reopening of our hearts and minds as we rise to the challenge of thinking about humanity on a global scale. A renewed global reorganization is desperately needed, particularly as democracy and freedom are on the decline. This was driven home this week as the leaders of NATO-affiliated nations, meeting in Europe, issued a stern warning about the encroachment of Russia and now China on global security.

The NATO alliance reiterated its commitment to democracy, human rights and the rule of law, and to preserving and protecting the freedom of nations unified under its banner. The subsequent meeting in Geneva between presidents Joe Biden and Vladimir Putin was the first in many years between these old foes, and while undoubtedly spirited behind closed doors, was a positive step toward reopening much-needed channels of communications. The new reality in this post-coronavirus world is that our interdependence makes communication essential and provides opportunity for increased human potential.

In the Middle East, that opportunity could not come at a better time as a challenge to Israel’s enemies. The Abraham Accords have held deep between Israel and the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Morocco. While Israel squashed Hamas in self-defence, thus displaying its military might, this latest conflict has proved to be a defining moment in many ways. Prophesy in the region is always a losing battle and it’s hard to know if Israel’s new government will survive the test of time. But for the naysayers who propagandize slanderous accusations against the Jewish State, the country’s new roster of cabinet members rebuts those allegations.

Israel’s new government is exploding with diversity — a mirror reflection of the nation itself. Its new cabinet includes nine female ministers (still inadequate but a positive direction), two Arab ministers, two openly gay ministers and one religious minister. The icing on the cake is the newly installed religious Prime Minister, Naftali Bennett, and the Alternate Prime Minister (also serving as foreign minister), Yair Lapid. The coming together of this new generation of Israeli leaders — the right and the centre-left — is probably the seismic shift a very fractured Israel needed to bring the country together. Given a recent poll that found 53 per cent of Palestinians leaning toward supporting Hamas, building an inclusive society has never been more urgent.

And while many rightly express concern for the safety and security of Israel with Benjamin Netanyahu’s departure as prime minister, time will tell if the new leadership is what Israel needed at this critical time. Netanyahu is arguably irreplaceable. There are few leaders in the world today who command as much respect and have such direct lines of communication with other major leaders. He still commands more public trust than Lapid and Bennett, having won 30 seats in the past election in comparison with 17 for Lapid and seven for Bennett respectively. Netanyahu has kept Israel safe, bolstered its economy, brought forward four peace agreements with its neighbours and opened more diplomatic missions around the world than ever before. The Jewish world owes him respect and gratitude.

And while Israel’s new leaders will need to delicately navigate a diverse coalition and a tense nation — particularly after the Arab uprising inside Israel during the past conflict — the bigger problem for Israel is the Jewish diaspora. It can no longer be ignored or taken for granted. Given the fact that the Talmud teaches that “all of Israel are responsible for one another,” what then will be Israel’s renewed responsibility to a global Jewish community that is reeling from a spike in anti-Semitism given the latest conflict?

Just this week, the Community Security Trust reported 201 anti-Semitic incidents had occurred in London, England, in May — an all-time high. There were 12 reports of assaults and more than 160 reports of abusive behaviour. Similarly, Germany’s Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution reported what it said was a frightening increase in threats to Jewish life in the country. Among the reported incidents, a swastika was found etched on an ark at a synagogue at the Frankfurt International Airport. The trend is also disconcerting in America, where the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) released a new study that found that 77 per cent of the nation’s Jewish community was concerned about anti-Semitism while 53 per cent reported an increase in Jew-hatred and 40 per cent were more concerned for their physical safety.

The spike in anti-Semitism is undoubtedly directly linked to Israel. U.S. Ambassador to the UN Linda Thomas-Greenfield told the U.S. House Foreign Affairs Committee this week that, “We’ve seen that countries that have put Israel on the agenda on a regular basis have expressed views that are anti-Semitic, and many of those countries are in the Middle East.” She observed that it’s “appalling that the UN Human Rights Council has one standing agenda — and that’s Israel — when there’s so many other countries that are committing human rights violations.” Bashing Israel has always been a way to distract the world from atrocities and human rights violations happening elsewhere. Anti-Semitism is now that new distraction, which the world can no longer afford given pressing global issues that threaten human security.

Thankfully some common sense prevails, but for far too long, successive Israeli governments have failed to address the growing threat to the world Jewish community. It’s time to take the NATO approach — a global alliance of preparedness — to combating anti-Semitism. The safeguarding of freedom, democracy and global peace — values upheld by NATO and democratic nations — is intertwined with the fight against anti-Semitism. As the world reopens and re-engages, it’s time for it to rise to this challenge.

A national report released by Statistics Canada on March 29, 2021 says there was a 7% national decline in police-reported hate crimes motivated by religion. "This decrease was due to fewer police-reported crimes motivated by hate against the Jewish population, which declined from 372 incidents to 296 incidents in 2019 (-20%)". 

In general, police hate crime units across the country reported just 1,946 hate crime incidents in 2019.  While the report says hate crimes increased by 7% or 129 incidents in that year, it is markedly lower than in 2017-2019 when hate crimes increased by 47%.  

As is the usual case, the report advises that hate crimes targeting the Black and Jewish populations are the most common, representing 18% and 16% of all hate crimes.  Hate crimes against the Muslim population rose slightly in 2019, from 166 to 181 incidents (+9%). 

Sadly, Statistics Canada says that "Police-reported hate crimes targeting sexual orientation increased 41% in 2019 to 263 incidents, compared with 186 incidents a year earlier".

While the Canadian Jewish community makes up less than 1% of the population, it remains one of the most targeted groups for hate crimes. Most antisemitic incidents go unreported. It remains challenging to quantify antisemitism, for example, on university campuses where students and faculty have felt targeted or marginalized. 

In some cases, antisemitic incidents like graffiti may be categorized as either vandalism or mischief.  They fall into a grey area and may not necessarily be categorized as hate crime.  Over this past year, we have seen a surge in antisemitic graffiti type incidents across the country affecting synagogues, stores, parks and public spaces. 

During the Covid-19 epidemic, online hate has exploded on social networking feeds like Facebook, Twitter, TikTok and Instagram. So much so in fact that many of these platforms have recently updated their diversity and respect policies to include antisemitism, hate and bigotry. In the same way, we need our legal system and hate crime data collection system to adapt to this changing virtual world - where hate crime now mainly manifests. 

Arguably, 1,946 reported hate crimes incidents in a country of 37+ million citizens is quite low. It is widely known that most hate speech/crime incidents are not reported to police.  Some incidents, like the violent antisemitic assault in Toronto either get categorized as a factor of one incident (when in fact it impacted numerous people) or may be classified differently. That remains to be seen. 

In fact, the report indicates there is a "case attrition" whereby of the 8,538 police-reported hate crimes, 82% did not result in a charge. Ultimately, only 3% ended up in court and sentenced. The report states: "This was largely due to the fact that an accused person had not been identified by police, most of which was connected to incidents of mischief, such as vandalism or graffiti". 

The full report is available here:  https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/pub/85-002-x/2021001/article/00002-eng.htm 

Since the shocking attack on Capitol Hill on January 6, 2021, public analysis of anti-Semitism has turned a blind eye to how the far left has turned Jewish life upside down over the last couple decades.

In Newsweek, Kathrin Meyer, the secretary general of the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance, wrote a meaningful article, in which she argues that, “Just weeks after right-wing extremists stormed the United States Capitol … it is now our duty to reflect on this event and act on history’s lessons from 1930s Europe, when the world failed to prevent extremist groups from rising to power — with disastrous effects.”  

Meyer is right that we must stay alert and aware of extremist groups that want to destroy our democracies. We now know that many of the rioters who attacked the Capitol were white supremacists who are a danger to our freedom and our way of life. One of the rioters even brazenly wore a “Camp Auschwitz — Work Makes You Free” shirt — an expression of Nazi ideology. This is abhorrent.

In all this, however, the equal complicity of the extreme left is being sidelined. If we are concerned about extremists attacking democracy, where is the condemnation of the anti-Semites on university campuses, for example, who have spent two decades churning out graduates who hate Israel, the only democracy in the Middle East?

University campuses, a central driver is what’s come to be known as “new anti-Semitism,” have seen Jewish students and faculty victimized by horrible events like Israeli Apartheid Week and movements like the boycott, divestment and sanctions campaign against Israel.

Frankly, it’s offensive that all this hate has been largely ignored recently. The inconvenient truth of this post-truth world in which we are living in is that the rise of anti-Semitism is coming from three spheres: far-left movements, radical Islam and white supremacists. Yet world leaders like U.S. President Joe Biden and UN Secretary General António Guterres have focused mainly on anti-Semitism emanating from the far right.

I was glad that Biden raised the alarm about white supremacy in his inauguration speech. And in a statement released this week marking International Holocaust Remembrance Day, Guterres, who has spoken out forcefully against anti-Semitism in the past, said that, “In Europe, the United States and elsewhere, white supremacists are organizing and recruiting across borders, flaunting the symbols and tropes of the Nazis and their murderous ambitions.” These are strong and welcomed words, of course, but there was no mention of the other sources of anti-Semitism, which are equally virulent.

In recent weeks, I have received several notifications from Jewish university students who have raised concerns about assignments that seem to distort the truth about Israel and even question historical facts about the Holocaust. Sources also tell me that some NDP members are proposing to put forward a motion at the party’s next convention to oppose the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s working definition of anti-Semitism. These are but two examples to underscore how the left is plotting against Israel and, by extension, the Jewish people.

The other anti-Semitism that must be talked about, as it is just as complicit in spreading hatred as white supremacism and the extreme left, is state-sponsored and comes primarily from the Islamic Republic of Iran. The Iranian regime continues to peddle Holocaust distortions and promote conspiracy theories against Israel and the Jewish people. It has also been the main moral backer of Al-Quds Day events around the world, which are held in Western democracies to delegitimize the Jewish state.

In a new world in which peace in the Middle East is closer than ever thanks to the Abraham Accords, we are seeing increasing numbers of friendships being made between Muslims and Jews. Incredible relationships are being forged at every level. This may ultimately diffuse the violent anti-Semitism we have witnessed in places like France and the United Kingdom over the last couple of decades. It may prove to be the antidote to the vicious left-wing campaign against the Jews — especially since the Arab world has virtually thrown out the boycott of Israel.

Still, anti-Semitism must be addressed cohesively and in its entirety. One cannot condemn white supremacism without condemning bias and hate against the Jewish state at the United Nations. One cannot memorialize the Holocaust while funding UN agencies that allegedly still utilize problematic textbooks that call for the elimination of the Jewish state. And one cannot say he or she stands against anti-Semitism and all forms of racism while allowing Jewish students and faculty to be subjected to hateful events on campus.

All forms of anti-Semitism are dangerous and pernicious, and far-left anti-Semitism cannot be ignored. It has the best chance of eroding our institutions and the very foundation of our democracy.

It's not enough that Jewish people are violently attacked on city streets, from New York to France.  It's not enough that social media and the internet is littered with antisemitic comments.  Its not enough that Saturday Night Live takes an antisemitic swipe at Israel fuelling conspiracy theories. And it's not enough that students on university campuses still find antisemitic graffiti on their frat houses (during Covid-19). 

Even the very definition of antisemitism is now under attack.  We cannot define the very thing that is victimizing us - despite the fact the International Holocaust and Remembrance Alliance's definition of antisemitism has been accepted by more than 30 nations and counting.  

Several weeks ago, a professor sent me a copy of an email he received from Ryerson University's Faculty Association.  It was a full copy of an “Executive motion on Antisemitism and the IHRA (International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance).  The motion was disconcerting.  It reads in part:

"The Ryerson Faculty Association unequivocally supports the academic freedom of its members. This freedom includes the right to pursue research and open inquiry in an honest search for knowledge that is free from institutional censorship, including that of the government. While the RFA opposes antisemitism and all forms of racism and hatred, the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s Working Definition of Antisemitism poses a serious threat to academic freedom in our university. The IHRA definition of antisemitism misconstrues antisemitism to include a broad range of criticism of the State of Israel. The IHRA definition thus undermines important anti-racist and decolonial initiatives in Canadian educational institutions. It can also be used to censor political speech and restrict the academic freedom of teachers and researchers who have developed critical perspectives on the policies and practices of the State of Israel. Such targeted attacks will have a chilling effect on the academic freedom of our members in the classroom, in their research, and in campus politics more broadly".

In the past, Ryerson has made great effort to confront antisemitism. In reply, I wrote the faculty association a courteous letter in an attempt to understand some of its concerns.  While it's good that the association affirms that it  “…opposes antisemitism and all forms of racism and hatred”; it contends that the IHRA definition poses a “serious threat to academic freedom in our university”.  

It's hard to believe that the motion poses a "serious threat" given that the definition itself is  a guideline for understanding antisemitism.  I explained that while perhaps imperfect, it is a necessary tool given the scourge and rising tide of antisemitism – especially on university campuses. It does not require or criminalize anyone from objection or critique or fair discussion – particularly at the academic level. It is certainly not a “serious threat” to free speech.  

In my letter, I also expressed that given the well-established and documented antisemitism on university campuses, the RFA’s strong language contending that the definition may subject educators to “targeted attacks” seems to be the very opposite of what has been happening on campuses. Jewish students are the ones who have felt under attack for two decades on university campuses. 

As well, the faculty member who provided me with the email told me that he is "terrified" by this latest attempt to shut down discussion of antisemitism.  Indeed, Jewish faculty on university campuses in general have felt scared for many years. 

Some academics may feel that the IHRA definition misconstrues antisemitism because it includes some criticism of Israel.  It appears that what seems challenging for them to understand is that Jewish people see Israel as the embodiment of Judaism itself.  Thus one sided attacks on Israel like BDS or the mislabeling of it as an apartheid state is not taken lightly.  

RFA's belief that the definition "undermines important anti-racist and de-colonial initiatives in Canadian educational institutions" is also misplaced. Jewish people are not colonizers of their own land. They are a people bound to the land by history that is factual and evidence based. There is little dispute of indigenous Jewish presence in the holy land. Denial of Jewish history and connection to the land is hurtful and false. 

It's hard to see how Academia is being "attacked" and how it's "seriously" threatened.  Academic freedom and free speech are values enshrined and cherished by the Jewish community and its friends.  We are open to fair and honest debate about antisemitism and historical truths concerning the Jewish people's connection to the land of Israel. 

We should be having this discussion in an open and fair manner. Thankfully, all Canadian universities can now look to prestigious British universities - our commonwealth partners - like Cambridge and Oxford who have adopted the IHRA working definition of antisemitism.  It's time for our community institutions to positively embrace the well-intentioned global shift to counter antisemitism.   

In the last number of months, at an international forum to combat antisemitism hosted by the US State Department, former Jewish UK Labour MP Luciana Berger said she was forced to resign from a party that was institutionally antisemitic. 

As a political figure, she said, she had been on the receiving end of thousands of antisemitic messages for months — with very little action having been undertaken by the party at that time.

UK’s new Labour leader, Sir Keir Starmer, apologized for what happened, and said he hoped that ministers who had left the party under the previous leadership would feel comfortable to return. Even though he seemed to stop short of directly inviting them to return, in a press conference, Starmer did the right thing and unequivocally accepted the findings of the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC).

The EHRC report was damning, concluding that there was a collective failure of leadership within the party. It found that Labour was responsible for three breaches of the Equity Act: It found that there was political interference in antisemitism complaints; that there was a failure to provide adequate training in handling antisemitism complaints; and that there was a reinforcement of antisemitic tropes by suggesting that these complaints were in fact fake smears meant to smear the party.

It appears that Starmer has indeed been a strong advocate in the fight against antisemitism, now saying that there had been a breakdown of trust between the party and the Jewish community. The party itself had been a mainstay for the Jewish community for decades as it advanced civil rights.

The recent struggle to remove antisemitic and anti-Israel content from a California ethnic studies curriculum demonstrated the formidable challenge posed...

“On behalf of the Labour Party, I am truly sorry to the Jewish people and to the Jewish leaders driven out,” Starmer said emphatically at a press briefing. While this development and Starmer’s impassioned plea is welcomed and likely accepted by the community, it remains to be seen over the next number of months if the party can push out antisemitism. “You should be nowhere near the party” if you believe in antisemitism, he stated. Indeed, former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn has now been excised from the party.

More significantly, antisemitism has grown in general over the years. In May 2020, it was reported to the Community Security Trust that in 2019, there were just over 1,800 antisemitic incidents that year. Indeed, there has been a steady uptick year to year; in 2013 — just 535 incidents were reported.

Beyond the Labour Party, antisemitism in the UK must be addressed on its whole. The cultural change called for by the party, must be promoted in societal terms — beyond politics. Perhaps, as some say, the vindication in all this is that the Labour Party lost the last election because the British public detested the antisemitism they observed.  If that is true to form, the fight against antisemitism in the UK stands a chance. These new developments are a good start.