The Media Accountability Project  

Poor coverage – Media outlet to be critiqued

A CJPME Media Researcher has launched a media alert for the following article. Please submit a quick response to the media, even if it’s just a sentence or two:

Title of Piece: Barbara Kay: If the state and police won't protect Jews, who will?

Media Outlet: The National Post
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Comments of the CJPME Media Researcher:
(Note: Please do not copy and paste the material below as the content to your message to the media - put all comments in your own words):

This National Post column by Barbara Kay calls for the normalization of the Jewish Defence League (JDL), a far-right vigilante group that is considered a terrorist organization by the FBI in the United States. The article also dehumanizes Muslims, as well as Palestinians and their allies.

Our team has noticed an uptick in calls for the reinvigoration of the JDL in Canada. In December 2025, we raised the alarm. The National Council of Canadian Muslims (NCCM) shared similar concerns — NCCM's Steven Zhou recently published a useful deep dive into the history of the JDL and Kahanism, you can watch it here. Now, an influential columnist in an agenda-setting newspaper in Canada is amplifying the call to revive the JDL to all new levels. 

It is time to push back.

Canada does consider an affiliated organization, Kahane Chai (Kach), to be a terror organization. Given the anti-Palestinian bias baked into Canada's terror list, this is a remarkable inclusion that highlights the extreme nature of this ideology. Both the JDL and Kahane Chai are based on the racist and violent ideology of Meir Kahane. It is unknown what action, if any, Canadian officials are taking in response to the revival of JDL.

As always, we encourage you to come up with your own angles, but here are some key issues with the op-ed:

• The column calls for the revival of the Jewish Defence League (JDL) in Canada, portraying it as a benign community safety organization that “did good work,” while excluding context on its extremist ideology, violent history, and terrorist associations. 
• Kay writes, "JDL Canada never carried any weapons. They did not mask. They wore self-identifying vests. They never initiated any physical confrontation." These claims are all false. A few pieces of evidence:
  • In 2017, a Canadian JDL member was arrested for beating a Palestinian man in Washington D.C. as footage showed other JDL Canada members standing nearby and watching (many with masks).
  • In 2025, a Canadian JDL member was arrested for uttering threats against Palestine solidarity activists. His home was searched by police and they discovered a .357 magnum lever action rifle and scope and 10 boxes of .357 magnum ammunition.
  • In 2020, the head of the Canadian JDL was banned from York University for his role in a violent altercation.
  • In 2024, JDL Canada members (again, some masked) were filmed calling for Gaza to be turned into a "parking lot." 
  • Even in an op-ed, claims must be based in fact. Kay's writing completely fails that standard.
• Throughout the column, Barbara Kay repeatedly frames Muslims, Palestinians and activists as a danger to Canadian society. She uses phrases such as “fear of organized Islamism’s growing power” and references to “pro-Hamas mobs” to frame Muslims and Palestinians as terrorist sympathizers.
• The article further defames Palestinians and allies in the movement by claiming that pro-Palestinian protests and slogans such as “intifada” are inherently violent or constitute a “dog whistle” for attacks on Jews. These are clear examples of anti-Palestinian racism.

By whitewashing this history and suggesting that Jewish institutions should support the revival of the JDL, the National Post is effectively legitimizing a vigilante group with a documented record of violence against Palestinians, Muslims, and other marginalized communities. This lack of context raises serious concerns about the Post’s journalistic credibility. Not being fully transparent about a group you are platforming in your article, is a serious breach of journalistic ethics by the Post.

The National Post is a member of the National News Media Council and is expected to uphold basic standards of accuracy, fairness, and accountability, including on its opinion pages. We encourage our media responders to challenge the outlet on its decision to publish rhetoric that dehumanizes entire communities and promotes extremist vigilantism. If you are dissatisfied with the outlet’s response, you might independently file a complaint with the NNC.

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Thank you very much. Every response makes a difference.

The CJPME Media Centre Team
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