"This reporting is not only inaccurate but also misleading. These demonstrations are anti-genocide protests, driven by the hunger to end Israel’s indiscriminate bombings of Palestinian civilians in Gaza. Furthermore, I take issue with the lack of skepticism around the framing of Israel’s now 11-month brutal and unlawful siege on Gaza. Israel has framed its occupation of the strip under the guise of targeting Hamas resistance fighters yet this nuance or context is nowhere to be found in your text."
Sep 16, 2024
To:
Mark Hamm, Editor-in-chief, The Winnipeg Sun
Ehsanullah Amiri, Reporter, National Post
I am writing on behalf of Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East (CJPME) to express serious concerns about your recent article titled: “The six Canadian terror plots police have foiled since October 7” published on September 12, 2024 by The Winnipeg Sun.
I take issue with your statement that since October 7, “massive anti-Israel protests have erupted” in Canada with some of these protests featuring “pro-Hamas slogans.”
My concern lies with how you frame pro-Palestine protesters as “anti-Israel”, inadvertently defaming them as terrorist sympathizers due to the use of “pro-Hamas” slogans.
This reporting is not only inaccurate but also misleading. These demonstrations are anti-genocide protests, driven by the hunger to end Israel’s indiscriminate bombings of Palestinian civilians in Gaza. Furthermore, I take issue with the lack of skepticism around the framing of Israel’s now 11-month brutal and unlawful siege on Gaza. Israel has framed its occupation of the strip under the guise of targeting Hamas resistance fighters yet this nuance or context is nowhere to be found in your text.
CJPME recommends you revise your narrative to more accurately represent the motivation behind these protests. I would use the term “anti-genocide” when referring to the protesters rather than labeling them as “anti-Israel” and associating them with pro-Hamas slogans.
Furthermore, I take issue with your quote from Richard Marceau where he states that there is a “crisis of extremist Islamism in Canada.” I am also concerned that you interviewed a representative of the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs (CIJA) and repeated his baseless statement that if this alleged rise in Islamism is not taken seriously “Canadians will die.”
As a journalist, it is your responsibility to verify all facts and question the assumptions made by those who make sensationalist statements regarding marginalized communities. In these two quotes alone, you fail to provide any skepticism or context, which effectively perpetuates the harmful stereotypes about Islam and Muslims made by Marceau and the CIJA representative. Given that both quotes come from pro-Israel voices, with CIJA in particular being a pro-Israel organization with a history of conflating anti-Zionism with antisemitism, this further contributes to the dangerous narrative that Muslims pose a threat to Canadians.
I urge you to either remove these quotes or add a clarifying sentence to emphasize that extremism is not representative of all Muslims.
In the future, please take greater responsibility in providing honest, accurate reporting that reflects the real motivations behind the pro-Palestine protests and avoid promoting harmful, divisive stereotypes about Muslims.
Thank you for your attention to these critical and sensitive matters. I trust you will take my edits into consideration now and in future reporting.
Sincerely,
Lynn Naji
Junior Analyst, Canadians for Justice and peace in the Middle East