"If Pride is to be a space of dignity and safety, it must protect Palestinians, Lebanese, and all marginalized communities. Not only those whose politics align with Israel."
Re: For a gay Jew, Capital Pride prompts hope and anxiety
Artur Wilczynski’s op-ed on Capital Pride is missing some important context. Last year, he resigned as the University of Ottawa’s special advisor on antisemitism after praising Israel’s attacks in Lebanon, strikes that killed and maimed civilians, including children as “brilliant.” Such remarks dehumanized Arabs and inflicted real harm on the Lebanese-Canadian community.
Now, for Wilczynski to now claim Pride is “unsafe” because of criticism of Zionism is the height of hypocrisy. He has celebrated violence against Arab civilians while demanding empathy and safety only for Zionist Jews. That is a racist double standard.
Queer Palestinians, and Queer Arabs more broadly, are erased in his framing. They face exclusion not only in Canadian queer spaces but also in daily life under Israel’s military occupation and siege. By equating criticism of Israel with antisemitism, Wilczynski silences Palestinians and portrays their struggle for human rights as a threat. This is textbook anti-Palestinian racism as defined by the Arab Canadian Lawyers Association and recognized by the federal government through the Canadian Guide to Understanding and Combating Islamophobia.
If Pride is to be a space of dignity and safety, it must protect Palestinians, Lebanese, and all marginalized communities. Not only those whose politics align with Israel.