Important context omitted when referring to the Occupied Palestinian Territories

"By deleting “occupied,” you misrepresent T’ruah’s own self-description, and you exclude context regarding Israel’s 55-year military occupation of Gaza, the West Bank, and East Jerusalem."


April 4, 2023

 

To:

Leanne Italie, Journalist, Associated Press

Anne Marie Owens, Editor-in-Chief, Toronto Star

Donovan Vincent, Public Editor, Toronto Star

Dear Ms. Italie, Ms. Owens, and Mr. Vincent,

I’m writing to you on behalf of Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East (CJPME, https://www.cjpme.org) to express an important critique regarding the article “At many Passover Seders, Israel unrest will be on the table authored by Leanne Italie of The Associated Press and published by Toronto Star on April 3, 2023.

The article is an interesting one which centers on how different Jewish-Canadians and Jewish-Americans will be leading their Passover seders and what topics will be of discussion.

When referring to Rabbi Jill Jacobs and the non-profit organization T’ruah, you describe it as a “nonprofit collective of rabbis focused on human rights in North America, Israel and the Palestinian territories.”

I find it highly inappropriate that you edited out the word “occupied” when referring to the mandate of Ms. Jacob’s organization T’ruah: something front-and-centre on Truah’s website.

At the very top of T’ruah’s home page, their mission statement reads:

T’ruah: The Rabbinic Call for Human Rights brings the Torah’s ideals of human dignity, equality, and justice to life by empowering rabbis and cantors to be moral voices and to lead Jewish communities in advancing democracy and human rights for all people in the United States, Canada, Israel, and the occupied Palestinian territories.” 

By deleting “occupied,” you misrepresent T’ruah’s own self-description, and you exclude context regarding Israel’s 55-year military occupation of Gaza, the West Bank, and East Jerusalem.

I ask that you amend your article to include “occupied Palestinian territories” to properly reflect Truah’s mission statement and the reality of Palestinians in the occupied territories.

I look forward to seeing this update promptly made.

Should you wish, you can contact me at 438-380-5410 for more information.

Sincerely,

Tayla Shair

Media Analyst, Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East