"Are your editors aware that protests at synagogues have not targeted worship services, but instead real estate fairs for property in the occupied West Bank as well as talks by Israeli soldiers who have served in Gaza? Does the Globe maintain that organizers can put any such event – however unrelated to religious services it may be – off limits to demonstrations by holding them at a house of worship?"
Dear Globe and Mail editorial team,
I am writing on behalf of Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East (CJPME) to make a complaint about your editorial titled, “Tweets and platitudes will not defeat antisemitism.”
Your piece forcefully and rightly condemns the horrifying antisemitic attack that took place recently an at Ottawa Loblaws store. The idea that an elderly woman could be stabbed in broad daylight by a self-described antisemite simply for the “crime” of being Jewish is terrifying and outrageous, and we are all grateful that the police acted immediately and robustly by arresting the suspect. It is especially shocking that, as you note, this is not an isolated incident. No synagogue, school, or other Jewish institution should ever be targeted by gunfire or other violent attack.
After such a strong start, it is distressing that your editorial then seamlessly shifts to blaming this horrifying attack on pro-Palestine protestors who had previously marched outside that same grocery store, without presenting a shred of evidence linking them to the suspect. Worse, you state that the protestors “target the places where Jewish Canadians gather,” implying that they are seeking to intimidate Jews, targeting them for no reason other than their religion.
You fail to mention that Loblaws is on the Boycott, Divest, Sanctions list not for any connection with Judaism but for sponsoring the Walk With Israel, an event that seeks to “rally and support Israelis” and therefore an obviously legitimate cause of concern for those who support Palestinians. Rather than ask if the demonstrators are “fostering an atmosphere of hate,” you might put that question to those who support Israel’s relentless assault on Gaza.
You then demand that Prime Minister Mark Carney adopt federal “bubble legislation” that would “protect religious and other institutions” by creating no-free-speech zones within which protest is forbidden. Such draconian measures constitute a flagrant and unacceptable attack on basic Charter freedoms, essentially immunizing any event against protest as long as it is held within the bubble.
Are your editors aware that protests at synagogues have not targeted worship services, but instead real estate fairs for property in the occupied West Bank as well as talks by Israeli soldiers who have served in Gaza? Does the Globe maintain that organizers can put any such event – however unrelated to religious services it may be – off limits to demonstrations by holding them at a house of worship?
When protestors targeted a Montreal church hosting a concert by a far-right singer in July, the Globe’s editorial not only defended his right to express himself but advocated “legal, peaceful protest” as a means of showing displeasure with him. On what possible grounds can you defend this blatant double standard?
It is essential that we vigorously combat the scourge of antisemitism, without baselessly scapegoating those who oppose Israel's ongoing destruction of Gaza. I would therefore urge the Globe to retract this editorial and to ensure that future editorials remain grounded in fact, evidence, reason and logic.
Sincerely,
Adam Allouba
Media Advocate
Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East
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