"In articles related to Israel's current military assault on Gaza, it is paramount to include Palestinian or pro-Palestinian perspectives. Perhaps a testimony explaining the weight of Israel's most recent series of genocidal attacks on Rafah would be appropriate as the "vandalism" you've based your piece off of clearly alludes to Rafah."
May 31, 2024
To:
Raju Madhar, Journalist, Toronto Star
Anne Marie Owens, Editor-in-Chief, Toronto Star
Dear Raju Madhar,
Considering this article reports on someone painting "Rafah is burning, Toronto will too" on Julie Dzerowicz's office window, I am disappointed that no context regarding events in Rafah were included. Early in your article, you write the following:
Julie Dzerowicz, who represents Davenport, went public on Wednesday morning with the incident at her office, which left words in red paint scrawled on her office window with a message saying, “Rahaf (sp) is burning Toronto will too,” an apparent reference to the city of Rafah in Gaza.
"An apparent reference to the city of Rafah in Gaza," is nowhere close to enough information to contextualize why someone may have engaged in this act of protest and civil disobedience. Though leaders of Western countries, like President Joe Biden, have reiterated that an Israeli ground invasion of Rafah is a hard red line, Israel has crossed it without opposition. The messages painted on the window of the MP's office window are undoubtedly referring to Israel's firing of a US-made missile on a group of tents in Rafah, set up to shelter displaced Palestinians. Beyond the maiming of Palestinians due to the initial explosion and launching of shrapnel, the camp subsequently went up in flames and civilians sheltering were ripped apart and burned alive. There are traumatizing videos of dead, stiff, and burnt bodies being pulled out of fire, decapitated toddlers, and several Palestinians suffering from blown off limbs. According to the United Nations Human Rights Office of the High Commissioner, at least 46 Palestinians were killed in this Israeli air strike in Rafah’s Tal al-Sultan on the night of Sunday 26 May 2024, 23 of whom were children, women, or older persons. Another similar Israeli attack in al-Mawasi on Tuesday killed 21 Palestinians, 13 of whom were women.
This barbaric attack happened amid Israel's military invasion of Rafah, characterized by incessant bombing, indiscriminate destruction of homes and refugee camps, and continued genocidal tactics like the blocking of humanitarian aid and food. The message was not "referencing the city of Rafah," it was denouncing Canada's complicity in the horrifying Israeli attacks on camps of displaced Palestinians in the past week. To write that the "message of protest" was an "apparent reference to the city of Rafah in Gaza," without including the critical context I've discussed, could be an intentional omission or lack of awareness of current events. In either case, it's poor journalism and must be edited immediately so as not to mislead your readers.
In articles related to Israel's current military assault on Gaza, it is paramount to include Palestinian or pro-Palestinian perspectives. Perhaps a testimony explaining the weight of Israel's most recent series of genocidal attacks on Rafah would be appropriate as the "vandalism" you've based your piece off of clearly alludes to Rafah.
I look forward to reading your article once it has been edited for accuracy and balance.
Best,
Rose Mardikian
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Rose Mardikian
Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East / Canadiens pour la Justice et la Paix au Moyen-Orient
580 Saint-Croix, Suite 060, Saint-Laurent, QC H4L 3X5
438-380-5410
