"In any case, the issue here is fundamentally the double standard. That an Islamophobic, far-right pro-Israel group constitutes the “mainstream” for National Post, but a Jewish advocacy group that challenges Israel’s human rights abuses constitutes a “fringe” position. I’m not sure why National Post feels that they can fairly categorize such groups into these categories, but this letter should highlight how fraught of an effort that is for a newsroom to engage in."
December 5, 2024
Dear all,
I’m writing to express alarm over unfair descriptions given of advocacy organizations in the recent National Post article, “'Fringe' activists condemned by Jewish groups after Parliament Hill occupation.”
1. The article inaccurately describes the Tafsik Organization as a “mainstream Jewish group.”
A. The Tafsik Organization is a far-right, Islamophobic, pro-Israel organization. Describing their advocacy work as “mainstream” is simply unfair and inaccurate.
Here are some examples of Tafsik falling far outside of the so-called mainstream of Jewish Canadian perspective (an admittedly odd framing, as Jewish Canadians by no means represent a monolithic viewpoint).
Tafsik’s website features merchandise showing all of the contemporary Occupied Palestinian Territories, Israel, and the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights as part of Israel on a map:
A recent academic study, published in the journal Canadian Jewish Studies found that “55 percent of Canada’s Jews with an opinion on the matter (42 per cent of all Canadian Jews) believe that ‘Israel and an independent Palestinian state [can] exist peacefully with each other.’” Further, according to an Angus-Reid poll, 55 per cent of Canadian Jews believe “the two-state solution is an integral part of the peace process” versus only 33 per cent that disagree or strongly disagree.
B. The Tafsik website false claims that “1200 Jewish civilians” were killed on October 7. This is not only false, but the kind of narrative that is promoted by a fringe group. The Tafsik website also says it is an organization of “Maccabee warriors.” I doubt that this would be a commonly held view in Canada.
C. The Tafsik Twitter page is littered with blatant Islamophobia and anti-Palestinian racism. Here is a post by the group stating that Ihab Hassane, a Palestinian Christian human rights activist, and “people like him” are “savages.” This was in response to Hassane sharing a story about feeding Gazans facing starvation.
Here is a common example of the crude Islamophobia the page promotes. Tafsik calls the pro-Palestine movement a “Islamist, Marxist death cult.”
The list could go on and on, but this should be evidence enough to any reasonable journalist that calling Tafsik “mainstream” is not merely a stretch, but presumably would be an insult to most Canadian Jews who would find Tafsik’s positions and statements condemnable.
2. Independent Jewish Voices described as “fringe”
That Tafsik is described as “mainstream,” but IJV is described as “fringe” is plainly alarming for a news article. In a 2023 survey from JSpace Canada, an arguably mainstream Canadian Jewish organization, it was found that Canadian Jews were split on the level of support that “Mainstream Jewish organizations” give to Israel, 33 per cent saying it was “too much” and 35 per cent saying it was “about right” or “not supportive enough.” What constitutes the mainstream in this question is up for interpretation, but it likely includes the major players in this space. That 33 per cent of Canadian Jews disagree with the mainstream approach shows why calling IJV “fringe” is likely far too strong of a descriptor.
In any case, the issue here is fundamentally the double standard. That an Islamophobic, far-right pro-Israel group constitutes the “mainstream” for National Post, but a Jewish advocacy group that challenges Israel’s human rights abuses constitutes a “fringe” position. I’m not sure why National Post feels that they can fairly categorize such groups into these categories, but this letter should highlight how fraught of an effort that is for a newsroom to engage in.
I am urging the National Post to remove the “mainstream” descriptor for the Tafsik Organization and provide an accurate descriptor of the group. An editor’s note would be appropriate. I also insist that the “fringe” descriptor for IJV be not merely qualified (as it currently is), but an appropriate statement that challenges that language be included, whether from CJPME or otherwise. This would be fair and appropriate.
Sincerely,
Jason Toney
Director of Media Advocacy, Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East