The Media Accountability Project  

The author claims that there is no moral equivalence between Israeli and Palestinian violence. He’s right, but for the wrong reasons. This year, the significant death toll of Palestinians during violent Israeli military “arrest raids” in the Occupied Palestinian Territories is again showing the world the reality of Israel’s brutal military occupation.

There are many issues with this shameful op-ed in the National Post from Avi Benlolo.  First, in his discussion about “terrorism,” Benlolo makes no distinction between Palestinian violence against civilians, and Palestinian violence against legitimate military targets like Israeli soldiers.  Second, in very racist fashion, Benlolo dehumanizes Palestinians by asserting they have a “death culture.” Finally, Benlolo ignores Israeli apartheid and occupation when he accuses Palestinians of antisemitism when they attack Israelis.  Overall, Benlolo misleads his reader and ignores important context in this extreme anti-Palestinian racist rant.

On March 8, 2023, the National Post published a letter to the editor by CJPME’s VP Michael Bueckert rebutting claims in an op-ed by Avi Benlolo that Palestinians possess a "death culture" due to the inculcation of "generations of Palestinian children to be venerated as 'martyrs' for mass murders." This followed a complaint from CJPME about the many falsehoods and errors in the op-ed.

The edited letter as published is as follows:

Avi Benlolo conflates all acts of Palestinian resistance under the rubric of “terror attacks,” whether they involve acts of violence against civilians or throwing rocks at Israeli military jeeps. What is more alarming however is his claim that the Palestinian Authority and UNRWA are “inculcating generations of Palestinian children to be venerated as ‘martyrs’ for mass murders,” and his implication that a “death culture” is pervasive in Palestinian society. This dehumanizing generalization of Palestinians as a group and labelling them with a “death culture” slander is more than inflammatory and a clear example of anti-Palestinian racism.

A citation of ACLA’s definition of anti-Palestinian racism and the various forms it may adopt would be pertinent in calling attention to racist attitudes that Palestinians must frequently confront.

Your news segment highlights the racist incident at Park West School in Halifax where six Palestinian students were targeted for wearing the Kufiyah by the school’s principal. I commend you for your thorough coverage of this incident. I especially appreciate that you interviewed two members of the Palestinian community, including a parent of one of the students targeted, as well as a member of Independent Jewish Voices Canada.

"Your news article highlights the shameful incident at Park West School in Halifax where Palestinian students were reproached for wearing the Kufiyah by the school’s principal. I commend you for your thoughtful and inclusive coverage of this incident. I especially appreciated your interviews with members of the local Palestinian community, including the President of the Atlantic Canada Palestinian Society."

"This dehumanizing generalization of Palestinians as a group and labelling them with the “death-culture” slander is inflammatory and a clear example of anti-Palestinian racism, as discussed by the Arab Canadian Lawyers Association (ACLA) in a 2022 report."

On February 19, 2023, the Toronto Sun published an inadequate story about a workshop for teachers in the Ontario Secondary School Teacher’s Federation (OSSTF). The workshop was titled “Anti-Palestinian racism: Nakba denial,” and the story focused on complaints from a pro-Israel group who said that the workshop was unfavorable to Israel.

CJPME contacted the Toronto Sun requesting an update to the article, noting that it had failed to “provide a Palestinian perspective nor to explain what the Nakba represents, leaving the reader with a single perspective.” Neither had the article explained what anti-Palestinian racism was. CJPME also noted that the single perspective in the story was from an organization which was hostile to Palestinian narratives and had previously called the Nakba a “fraud.”

On February 28, 2023, the Toronto Sun published a follow-up article which addressed these issues. Titled “CJPME asks for inclusion of Palestinian perspective,” the article provided a definition of the Nakba, and included the definition of anti-Palestinian racism from the Arab Canadian Lawyers Association (ACLA), as CJPME had requested.

It is important that Canadian audiences are aware about such instances of anti-Palestinian racism in our education system and how they affect the Palestinian-Canadian community. I hope to see continued coverage of anti-Palestinian racism and how it affects the lives and perceptions of Palestinians in Canada. 

There are a few issues with this article. First, it fails to provide a single Palestinian perspective for an article which is all about anti-Palestinian racism. Second, the article lacks any discussion or explanation of the meaning of the term, “Nakba,” or what it means for Palestinians; nor does it include a definition of anti-Palestinian racism