"While the protests were indeed “noisy,” this is the nature of protests, and such freedom of expression is a cherished right in a democratic society, even when some other people may disagree with what is being expressed."
March 7, 2024
To:
Melissa Francois, CBC News Montreal
CBC News Montreal
Dear Ms. Francois and CBC Staff,
I’m writing to you to ask you to apply a higher standard of journalism to your coverage of protests in Montreal, based on your broadcast Wednesday evening, March 6, around 5:30 p.m., about the court injunction preventing pro-Palestinian groups from protesting near certain sites important to Montreal’s Jewish community.
First, you mention that the protests were “noisy and violent,” but provide no proof or explanation of your descriptor “violent.” You give voice to a representative of the CJA who talks about entrances being blocked, but there is no mention of physical violence, physical contact or arrests. While the protests were indeed “noisy,” this is the nature of protests, and such freedom of expression is a cherished right in a democratic society, even when some other people may disagree with what is being expressed.
Please do an on-air correction to specify that the CBC erred in describing the protests as “violent,” given that there is no evidence of violence.
Next, I believe your coverage would have been greatly enriched had you highlighted the reasons why people were protesting earlier this week. I believe it should have been important to point out that the protestors were not at the sites because the sites were “Jewish” but because the events being hosted at these locations were highly controversial. Notably, they were controversial 1) because they were hosting active members of Israel’s occupation forces, and 2) because they were promoting the sale of land stolen from Palestinians by Israel in Israeli-occupied Palestinian territory. While the story focused on the court injunction, the reasons for the protest were highly pertinent to the coverage.
Additionally, I believe it was imperative to provide more context around events in Palestine-Israel which give context to this story. The CJA representative himself, in a clip of an interview with him, cited the conflict in Palestine-Israel as the reason for the protests. Surely it would have been appropriate to mention the over 30,000 Palestinians killed in Gaza since October 7, and how Palestinians in Gaza are currently facing starvation, dehydration and malnutrition. And surely, in the case of the illegal sale of Palestinian land to Canadians, it would have been appropriate to mention Israel’s over 50-year-old belligerent occupation of Palestinian land.
Finally, this injunction may be viewed by many as a form of anti-Palestinian racism (APR.) The Arab Canadian Lawyers Association (ACLA), defines APR as including acts which seek to silence or erase Palestinians or their narratives. How might Palestinians respond to the silencing of their very legitimate concerns? Court injunctions are serious matters of free speech, and your story should have explored these sensitivities.
Likewise, with respect to your reporting, while your segment provides the view of a representative of the progressive Independent Jewish Voices, your segment makes no mention of an attempt to reach Palestinian spokespeople, whether as organizers of the protests, or as representatives of the Palestinian-Canadian community. In the future, please be sure to include Palestinians among the diversity of voices featured on CBC Montreal.
Please consider these important elements in future reporting on such stories. Should you wish, feel free to contact me at 438-380-5410.
Sincerely,
Thomas Woodley, MPA
President, Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East