"The Palestinian struggle is NOT a global, religious-based struggle between Muslims and Jews, but rather a regional Palestinian struggle against oppression and colonialism. Anti-Palestinian racism is manifested in attempts by Israel and pro-Israel organizations to suppress Palestinian identity and narratives. As such, good journalism on this issue would highlight Palestinian perspectives in such articles."
February 2, 2024
To:
Justin Chandler, Staff Reporter, CBC News
Brodie Fenlon, News Editor-in-Chief, CBC News
Dear Mr. Chandler,
I am writing on behalf of Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East to express my concern regarding the article, “Hamilton Jewish community spent $200K on security but members still afraid, says federation president,” published on February 5 by CBC News. I emailed you, criticizing one of your past articles with incredibly similar concerns to those found in this letter. I hope you will make the following edits promptly and prioritize these considerations when writing future articles.
Perhaps the most critical component that is missing from your article is the context regarding self-reporting of hate crimes and the plethora of reasons why Muslims and Palestinians are less likely to self-report hate crime incidents. The infrastructure for reporting antisemitism is relatively well-developed and robust because of the wide range of Canadian civil society and lobbying groups dedicated to this cause. Self-reporting methods for victims of anti-Palestinian racism are far less developed, however. In 2018, Parliament’s Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage also found that under-reporting was a predictable challenge in fighting racism among Muslim-Canadian communities because some victims have a “fear of engaging with the police” or that they may not be supported or believed if they did so.[1] To adhere to journalistic ethics, please contextualize the data included in your article with the information provided above.
Here is a brief list of resources regarding the under-reporting of anti-Palestinian hate crimes:
- Canadian Heritage Parliamentary Committee, Evidence, 1st Session, 42nd Parliament, 25 September 2017, 1640 (Ms. Shalini Konanur, Executive Director and Lawyer, South Asian Legal Clinic of Ontario (SALCO).
- A report by Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East, titled “Anti-Palestinian Racism in Canada.”
- A report published in 2021 by Independent Jewish Voices, titled “The Use and Misuse of Antisemitism Statistics in Canada.”
While the inclusion of both Jewish and Muslim testimonies is appreciated, your placement of additional information regarding Islamophobia at the very end of your article is disappointing. By consistently placing comments from one group above those from another, you implicitly suggest a hierarchy of perspectives to your readers. Additionally, your headline insinuates that your article is entirely about antisemitism, even though the end of your article pertains to Islamophobia. Please adjust your headline accordingly and include Muslim testimonies earlier in your article.
The conflation of Islamophobia and anti-Palestinian racism is pervasive. Although these two types of racism undoubtedly overlap in some cases, they are distinct. The Palestinian struggle is NOT a global, religious-based struggle between Muslims and Jews, but rather a regional Palestinian struggle against oppression and colonialism. Anti-Palestinian racism is manifested in attempts by Israel and pro-Israel organizations to suppress Palestinian identity and narratives. As such, good journalism on this issue would highlight Palestinian perspectives in such articles.
Thank you for making these edits promptly.
Sincerely,
Rose Mardikian,
Media Analyst, Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East
[1] CHPC, Evidence, 1st Session, 42nd Parliament, 25 September 2017, 1705 (Ms. Shalini Konanur, Executive Director and Lawyer, South Asian Legal Clinic of Ontario (SALCO)).