"This information hopefully makes clear why the presence of these groups serves not to bring safety to Jewish people but to intimidate and threaten advocates for Palestinian human rights. They should be identified instead as extremist vigilante organizations with far-right, anti-Palestinian ideologies."
September 10, 2024
Dear Editors of the Hamilton Spectator, Niagara Falls Review, CityNews Toronto, and the Canadian Jewish News,
I'm writing on behalf of Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East (CJPME) to express concern about the article, "Safety patrol teams show up at University of Toronto to protect Jewish students as the school year begins.” The article was originally published by the Canadian Jewish News but was published by multiple newspapers. The journalist is part of Canada’s Local Journalism Initiative.
First, the article was published by the Hamilton Spectator, Niagara Falls Review, and CityNews Toronto. While the Spectator and the Review disclosed that the article was originally written for the Canadian Jewish News, CityNews Toronto did not. However, CityNews Toronto took the extraordinary step of unpublishing the article from its website. CJPME is alarmed by the practice of unpublishing, as it does not align with recommendations from the Canadian Association of Journalists. To be clear, we urge corrections and editor’s notes, not unpublishing, as it erases the historical record.
Second, the article discusses “Jewish safety patrol teams” but fails to elaborate on the ideologies of these groups, raising many red flags. The remainder of my letter will expand on this point.
Israel Now
The article fails to note the presence of Israel Now, formerly known as the Jewish Defense League Canada (JDL), founded by Meir Weinstein, who also attended the counter-protests at the University of Toronto. The Jewish Defense League is listed as a terrorist organization by the FBI, which seems to have prompted the Canadian chapter’s name change to Israel Now. Israel Now maintains the same ideology as the JDL. Their website and social media still feature images of Meir Kahane, founder of the far-right Israeli political party Kach.
Figure 1 Screenshot from IsraelNow.org that features convicted terrorist Meir Kahane, the ideological inspiration for Israel Now
Kahane was convicted of terrorism in both the US and Israel, and Kach is listed as a proscribed terrorist organization by Public Safety Canada. Meir Weinstein is a self-proclaimed “disciple” of Kahane. Over the weekend, Weinstein shared a video of Israel Now counter-protests at the University of Toronto from Friday waving Israeli and Kach flags and saying, “Make Gaza a parking lot.”
Figure 2 Screenshot from a video on X showing protester holding a Kach flag
The JDL in Canada has its own history of initiating violent attacks against pro-Palestine demonstrators. This includes the beating of protestors at an AIPAC event in Washington in 2017, for which Canadian JDL members were charged with assault as a suspected hate crime, and attacks on counter-protestors at York University in 2019.
J Force
J Force is a private security firm. While they offer various services to clients, they advertise protest security with an image that includes Israel’s flag. Their website’s blog lists the 3 top security threats Canadians face. The third leading threat in Canada they list is antisemitism. It is unclear why a private security firm is attempting to do the job of law enforcement of campus security. Their own suggestions do not include deploying volunteers dressed in tactical gear to intimidate Palestine solidarity protesters, and yet that is what they seem to have done on September 6.
Magen Herut
J Force partners with Magen Herut, a volunteer-based Zionist vigilante group. Magen Herut is associated with Herut Canada, an organization that advocates for settling all of “Judea and Samaria,” including the Occupied West Bank and Gaza, which goes against international law and constitutes a far-right political position. Magen Herut fundraises through multiple channels, including Magshimey Herut North America. Magshimey Herut advocates a similar ideology, based primarily around the work of Jabotinsky. They note their support for Jabotinsky’s desire for “the establishment of a Jewish state on both sides of the Jordan River.” Again, these represent extremist, far-right ideologies.
It is alarming that an article in mainstream Canadian news media would omit all of this critical information and present these groups merely as “safety patrols.” Their public ideologies either explicitly or implicitly advocate for violence against Palestinians. This information hopefully makes clear why the presence of these groups serves not to bring safety to Jewish people but to intimidate and threaten advocates for Palestinian human rights. They should be identified instead as extremist vigilante organizations with far-right, anti-Palestinian ideologies.
Sincerely,
Jason Toney
Director of Media Advocacy, Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East