On Oct. 16-17, I was at the first-ever national Antisemitism: Face It, Fight It conference in Ottawa. It was sponsored by Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs (CIJA), with support from Jewish Federations across Canada, including the Jewish Federation of Winnipeg. I was there reporting for the Winnipeg Free Press and the Canadian Jewish News. Below find the articles I wrote before it, during it and after it. I will be adding to the list as the conference continues.
1. Conference to address "frightening growth in antisemitism across the country"
WINNIPEG, Man. -- War is raging between Israel
and Hamas as this column is being written on October 8. It is on the minds of
Canadian Jews. Also on their minds is the rise in antisemitism in this country.
That’s why, a year ago, they started planning a first-ever national conference to
discuss the ongoing battle against hate toward Jews.
Called Antisemitism: Face It,
Fight It, the October 16-17 conference in Ottawa is sponsored by the Centre for
Israel and Jewish Affairs (CIJA), with support from Jewish Federations across
Canada, including the Jewish Federation of Winnipeg.
According to Shimon Koffler
Fogel, President and CEO of CIJA, the goal of the event—the largest national
event of its kind in Canada—is to address the “frightening growth in
antisemitism across the country.”
About a thousand people are registered
for the two-day gathering, which will address the changing face of antisemitism
today and then encourage attendees to return home and turn what they learned
“into action,” as Fogel put it.
Of major concern to
conference organizers is the rise of antisemitism on social media, along with other
kinds of hate.
“Online hate is spreading,”
Fogel said. “We are still struggling to get a handle on that and how to push
back against it.”
Through the conference,
participants will be encouraged to find ways to confront it and build allyship
with other groups that are also concerned about hate on the Internet.
“It’s not enough to wring our
hands,” he said. “We need to stand up and move from victim to empowered action.”
While at the event,
conference goers will hear speakers on topics such as “United Against
Antisemitism: Confronting the Challenge Together;” “Online Hate: Breaking out
and Breaking down the Echo Chambers;” “Countering Antisemitism: Hate vs. the
Law;” “Turning Sideline Passion to Frontline Action: Finding your Voice in the
Political World;” and “Harnessing Social Media for Good: Done with the
Doomscroll.”
Participants will also fan
out to visit politicians on Parliament Hill, asking them to undertake a national
campaign to promote social media literacy.
The goal of such a campaign
would be to help Canadians learn what hate looks like online and how to deal
with it, Fogel said, noting this would be about “all hate, not just
antisemitism, about anything that marginalizes or delegitimizes anyone.”
Social media can be a power
for good, he said, “but there is a dark side to it.”
Conference participants will
also ask politicians to expand and streamline the Security Infrastructure
Program, which is designed to enhance the safety of places of worship and other
gathering places.
The “threat levels” have
changed, Fogel said, adding there is a need to provide extra security today.
Through the conference, “we
want to empower people to be part of the solution” to fighting hatred in
Canada, Fogel stated. “It’s not just a Jewish problem. All Canadians have to
take part in addressing it.”
At a Tuesday evening gala, the Honourable Irwin Cotler will receive a lifetime achievement award in
recognition of his work on behalf of human rights for the world’s most
vulnerable and oppressed citizens. Leaders of Canada’s main political parties
are also slated to speak at the event.
In addition to what was
planned before war broke out, the conference program will be adapted to focus
on the fighting between Israel and Hamas, including any negative effects for
Jews in Canada. Security will also be beefed up, said Nicole Amiel,
who directs media relations for CIJA.
Belle Jarniewski of Winnipeg greets new Special Envoy Deborah Lyons
2. Participants in Antisemitism: Face It, Fight It share hopes for the event
WINNIPEG, Man. -- For Laia Shpeller, attending the
Antisemitism: Face It, Fight It Conference in Ottawa is an opportunity to
“engage in meaningful discussions about being Jewish in Canada and how our
community can work together.”
The Winnipegger, who is studying
biomedical engineering at the University of British Columbia, sees the Oct.
16-17 event as a way to “learn from diverse voices within the Canadian Jewish
community, and learn about how their experiences, both with antisemitism and in
general, have influenced their work.”
As a young adult, she also
believes it’s important to have young voices at the conference since they can
“bring a unique perspective due to our willingness to challenge norms” and
because of their exposure to diverse perspectives during their studies.
At the same time, the conference
will allow her to learn more about advocacy and policy strategies so she can
improve her efforts to engage politicians.
Noting the event has been in the
planning for a long time, she said the rise in antisemitic rhetoric and actions
due to the Israel-Hamas war “makes having these conversations right now even
more critical.”
Steven Kroft is national
vice-chair for Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs (CIJA). Also from Winnipeg,
he agreed the war between Israel and Hamas gives the conference “new meaning
and a greater sense of urgency.”
Even without that, although Jews
make up less than one per cent of Canada’s population they are targets of about
55 per cent of all religious hate crimes, he said.
That’s why, for him, “bringing
Jews and others from across Canada together to develop a collective path
forward in our fight against antisemitism is so critically important . . . If
we don’t stand up and fight for ourselves, who will?”
For Rob Berkowits, executive
director of Winnipeg’s Rady Jewish Community Centre, the Conference is a way to
“educate myself on how to best support my staff and volunteers” during a time
of rising antisemitism.
Antisemitism, he added, “creates a
feeling of isolation and vulnerability so it is important to learn strategies
to manage and support these emotions.”
When it is over, he hopes to have
“a better understanding why antisemitism persists and to develop an improved
skill set to combat its rise in my local community.”
The
conference is sponsored by the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs (CIJA),
with support from Jewish Federations across Canada, including the Jewish
Federation of Winnipeg.
Due
to the war between Israel and Hamas, some of the speakers from Israel are
unable to attend and the event will have extra security.
The
event kicks off Monday morning with an announcement from the Government of
Canada announcing the appointment of a new Special Envoy on Preserving
Holocaust Remembrance and Combating Antisemitism.
New Special Envoy Deborah Lyons with outgoing Special Envoy Irwin Cotler
3. New Special Envoy on Preserving Holocaust Remembrance and Combating Antisemitism named
OTTAWA, Ont. -- Deborah Lyons has
been named the new Special Envoy on Preserving Holocaust Remembrance and
Combating Antisemitism.
The announcement
was made by Karina Gould, Leader of the Government in the House of Commons, at
the start of October 16-17 Antisemitism: Face It, Fight It Conference in
Ottawa.
The announcement
“holds particular significance today as Canadians come to terms with the brutal
attack by Hamas against Israel a week ago,” said Gould, adding the Government
of Canada “stands shoulder to shoulder” with the Jewish community at this time.
She went on to note
how many members of the Jewish community in Canada are “hurt and anxious”
while, at the same time, acknowledging the humanitarian crisis in Gaza.
Outgoing Special
Envoy Irwin Cotler praised Lyons’ appointment, saying he “could not be happier”
to see her in that role.
“She is the right
person in the right place at the right time” due to her experience and
expertise, he said, especially at this moment “of historical inflection” in
“the shadow” of last weekends attack by Hamas against Israel.
Lyons, the former
Canadian Ambassador to Israel from 2016-20, acknowledged she is taking on the
role “at a most critical time.”
As Special Envoy,
she promised to promote Holocaust education, “including at Canadian
universities;” to highlight the "many contributions of the Canadian Jewish
community;” to address online antisemitism; to “collect data so no one can tell
me this [antisemitism] isn’t real; and to “make sure every member of the Jewish
community in Canada feels safe.”
She delivered a
special charge to Canada’s faith and spiritual leaders to “bring us all
together . . . Now more than ever we need you and your leadership to gather us
together as all God’s children.”
She also asked the
media to “challenge the seeds of misinformation” and “shine a light in the
darkness and hold it high. Political leaders at all levels, she added, should "guide
us and unite us and inspire us to build a diverse and inclusive Canada.”
She said she looks
forward to working with Amira Elghawaby, Canada’s special representative on
combating Islamophobia.
When asked what
she, as a non-Jew, could bring to the special envoy role, Lyons said she would
bring “the Canadian way” of “fighting for one another and supporting each
other,” especially in “these difficult times.”
Lyons also served
as Special Representative of the Secretary-General of the United Nations for
Afghanistan, Head of the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan from
2020-22 and as Canadian Ambassador to the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan from
2013–16.
She succeeds Cotler,
who was appointed to the role in 2020 as part of the Government of Canada’s
commitment to preserve the memory of the Holocaust and combat antisemitism.
During his time, the
federal government expanded its commitment to the International Holocaust
Remembrance Alliance and committed $85 million in 2022 for programs to fight
antisemitism, along with funding for new Holocaust museums in Toronto and
Montreal.
The conference, the
first national event of its kind in Canada. is sponsored by the Centre for
Israel and Jewish Affairs (CIJA), with support from Jewish Federations across
Canada, including the Jewish Federation of Winnipeg.
Michael Levitt with former Alberta Premier Jason Kenny and online panellists
4. To fight antisemitism, Jews need non-Jewish allies
OTTAWA, Ont. -- “Jews cannot fight
antisemitism alone.”
That was the sentiment expressed by Michael Levitt,
president and CEO of the Friends of Simon Wiesenthal Centre, at the October
16-17 Antisemitism: Face It, Fight It conference in Ottawa.
Progress has been made,
he went on to say, noting it is “not just up to Jewish Canadians to fight it .
. . what starts with Jews never ends with Jews.”
Levitt was joined in a
session at the conference titled United Against Antisemitism: Confronting the
Challenge Together by Lord John Mann, Independent Adviser on Antisemitism to
Government of the United Kingdom; Farah Pandith, a senior advisor at the Anti-Defamation
League in the U.S.; and Katharina von Schnurbein, European Commission
Coordinator on Combating Antisemitism and Fostering Jewish Life.
For Schnurbein,
non-Jews play a significant role in ensuring Jews can go about their lives
feeling “free from insecurity . . . we have a responsibility to Jewish people.”
Mann added that
non-Jews today need to stand up against the “new Nazis” today just as some did
in the previous century standing up against Nazism in Germany.
“We need to fight the
Nazis of Hamas,” he said, adding a “huge majority” of people in Great Britain
“stand with Israel.”
“We will not tolerate
this evil,” he said. “We will keep fighting, keep organizing.”
For Pandith, a Muslim, having
people of other faith communities speak up for Jews is key.
“A different voice
carries a different weight,” she said. “The messenger matters. It can’t just be
Jews standing up against antisemitism or Muslims standing against
Islamophobia.”
She encouraged members
of the Canadian Jewish community to reach out to other faith groups, “otherwise
we will never get to where we need to be.”
On the subject of
social media, Schnurbein noted the Europe Union has created a new digital
service act to force social media companies to police online hate on their
platforms.
If they don’t respond
quickly to complaints about online hate speech, the companies can be fined, she
said, noting there has been an “explosion” of online antisemitism following the
October 7 Hamas attack on Israel.
“We are reminding them
[the companies] of their obligation under the Act to enforce the rules,” she
said.
Pandith said the U.S.
government has been “very sloppy” in its enforcement of online hate
regulations, adding people were “naïve” about the role social media would play
when it first started.
“We didn’t understand
the impact it would have,” she said. “We didn’t ask hard enough questions. Now
we are dealing with a toxic environment.”
Pandith admitted she
was not optimistic about the future online “if we don’t get more serious” about
dealing with hate on social media. “If we don’t, we will see things get even
worse,” she said.
Also speaking at the
session was Jason Kenney, former premier of Alberta who also served as Minister
for Multiculturalism for eight years in Prime Minister Harper’s government.
Kenney was critical of
what he called “pseudo intellectualism” on some Canadian university campuses
that justifies antisemitism, both online and in demonstrations “glorifying”
attacks on Israel by terrorist organizations like Hamas and other hate directed
at Jews.
Arif Virani, Minister
of Justice and Attorney General of Canada, indicated the federal government
intends to bring legislation forward to combat online hate speech. “We need
safe online environments just as we need safe streets,” he said.
The conference, the first national event of its kind in
Canada. is sponsored by the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs (CIJA), with
support from Jewish Federations across Canada, including the Jewish Federation
of Winnipeg.
Joel Finkelstein talks to participants at the conference .
5. Warning system for antisemitism needed: Expert
OTTAWA, Ont. -- Just
like there are early warning systems for hurricanes and tornadoes, Canada needs
a system to warn about oncoming hate on social media.
That’s the view of Joel
Finkelstein, chief science officer and co-founder of the Network Contagion
Research Institute at Rutgers University in New Brunswick, New Jersey.
Hate on social media
“is a predictor about real-world actions,” said Finkelstein in an interview at
the Oct. 16-17 Antisemitism: Face It, Fight It conference in Ottawa.
“What we see on social
media turns up in real life,” he said, comparing his work to those who forecast
storms. “Social media is a signal of what’s to come.”
This is true whenever
there is a conflict in Israel, he said, noting that online activity translates
into real-world hate. “The conflicts are short, but there is a long tail, a
spillover effect,” he said.
By way of illustration,
Finkelstein pointed to a report about a conflict between Israel and
Palestinians in Gaza in 2021.
An analysis by the
Institute of more than 100 million social media posts at that time showed a relationship
between online antisemitic remarks on social media platforms and actions a week
or two later against Jews in cities like Toronto and Montreal.
This included antisemitic
activities such as chants of violent slogans against Jews during protests,
vandalism of synagogues, hate graffiti in Jewish neighbourhoods, and other hate
crimes.
With the current war
between Israel and Hamas, “there is looming anticipation of a similar surge in
antisemitism in Canada,” he said. “We have already started to see several
similar trends emerging.”
Content on social media
is created and shared by ideological hate groups, he said, but then propelled by
bot farms and troll accounts operated by authoritarian regimes like China,
North Korea and some in the Middle East — regimes that “want to disrupt and
destabilize western democracies.”
Through his Institute, Finkelstein
tracks hate towards other visible minorities in the U.S., such as Muslims and
Hindus, reporting the findings to law enforcement agencies, the FBI, politicians
and others.
This includes reporting
to social media companies to let them know what’s happening on their platforms.
“We alert them so they can respond in good faith,” he said.
Finkelstein believes
Jews in Canada could lead the way in helping to set up such an early warning
system in this country.
“It should not just be
for Jews, but we should make it possible,” he said, adding “community security
must evolve in the age of information disorder to meet these threats with
faster, real-time data collection.”
Becca Wertman-Traub
directs research for the Centre
for Israel and Jewish Affairs (CIJA). She agreed with Finkelstein that such an
early warning system would be helpful in Canada.
“In 2021, we didn’t make the connection between social media
and actions,” she said. “Now we are aware of the relationship between the two.
It shows we can anticipate something after a spike in online hate towards
Jews.”
Currently, most of what CIJA can do is reactive since
information about hate from Statistics Canada is a year old, based on reports
from police across the country, she explained.
That is like doing clean-up and recovery work after a storm instead
of proactively getting people, governments and police ready for one so they can
be prepared and weather it better, she said.
That’s why research by people like Finkelstein is so
important. “By tracking social media, we can get current data by the day, hour
and minute,” she said. “We can act much quicker.”
Such a system doesn’t currently exist in Canada, but CIJA is
exploring it as an option, she noted.
The conference, the first national event of its kind in
Canada. is sponsored by the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs (CIJA), with
support from Jewish Federations across Canada, including the Jewish Federation
of Winnipeg.
CIJA's National Chair, Gail Adelson-Marcovitz, welcomes Trudeau to the podium to speak at the conference.
6. Federal party leaders condemn Hamas attack, pledge support for Canadian Jewish community
OTTAWA, Ont. -- “The hearts of all
Canadians are broken.”
With those words,
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau began his remarks October 17 at the
Antisemitism: Face It, Fight It conference in Ottawa.
The Prime Minister
was one of four political leaders invited to speak at the event, including
Pierre Poilievre, leader of the Conservative Party, Jagmeet Singh, leader of
New Democratic Party, and Bloc Party leader Yves-François Blanchet.
The Prime Minister
went on to condemn the October 7 attack by Hamas and to call for the immediate
release of all their hostages, adding his government “deeply cares” for those
who are missing and is in close touch with families of hostages.
The Canadian
government is also working as quickly and safely as possible to evacuate
Canadians in the region impacted by the fighting, he said, noting that 12
flights have taken out over 1,300 people.
“We will not stop
being there for affected Canadians,” he stated.
Israel, he added,
has a right to defend itself, and Canada “will always be a friend to Israel,
defend its rights, including its right to exist.”
He decried the
“unimaginable acts” of indiscriminate killing of Israelis by Hamas, adding that
Hamas “doesn’t represent Palestinians or their legitimate aspirations for a
better future.”
Hamas, he said,
only stands for “more suffering for Israel and Palestinians.”
Noting he has heard
stories of Canadian Jews who are worried about wearing yarmulkes or stars of
David necklaces, Trudeau said the RCMP is working to “keep the Jewish
community safe and secure.”
“You are not
alone,” he stated. “The work of fighting hate is the work of all of us, all
Canadians, especially non-Jewish Canadians . . . we all need to stand up and
step up.”
He concluded his
remarks by saying “this too shall pass . . . we will get through this together,
my friends.”
Trudeau was
followed by Pierre Poilievre, who said Jews in Canada are not alone at this
time. “You have friends who are with you through thick and thin and onward to
triumph,” he stated.
He went on to
condemn Hamas, who he said had the goal of maximizing the “bloodshed of
Israelis, Palestinians and Muslims as well.”
Iran, he said, was
behind the attack because it wanted to disrupt negotiations between Israel and
Arab countries in the region. “They were worried the talks could lead to peace
and stability in the Middle East,” he stated.
That, he said,
would be “Iran’s worst nightmare” since it would end the “unending supply of
suffering and resentment” that fuels conflict in the region.
While saying he
grieved equally for innocent Israeli and Palestinians killed and wounded by the
fighting, Poilievre said there is “no equivalence between terrorists that seek
to maximize the deaths of innocent civilians and the state of Israel that seeks
to protect them.”
He went on to say
Canada must ensure there is the minimum loss of life and suffering of the
Palestinian people, and that safe zones should be created in Gaza along with a
humanitarian corridor for food, medicine and water.
He went on to call
for a comprehensive review of Canadian aid to Palestinians to “make sure it
reaches people in need, not terrorists.”
In his remarks,
Jagmeet Singh, leader of New Democratic Party, also condemned the attacks,
adding he has heard the pain of Jewish Canadians who “are deeply afraid . . . I
want to acknowledge that.”
He also grieved for
Palestinians killed and injured by the fighting, he said, and called for the
upholding of international law to protect civilians in Gaza.
Celebrations of the
attack in Canada are “never justified,” Singh stated, adding “we must all do
what we can to tackle the rise in hate.” This includes, he said, doing more to
secure places of worship and tackling online hate.
“In these dark
times, we must treat each other well,” he said, going on to call for an
immediate ceasefire — acknowledging, ad he noted, that “not everyone will agree
with me.”
In the future, he
stated, he hoped Canadians could “build a world where all our children can live
in peace.”
The evening ended
with an expression of gratitude for Irwin Cotler, the outgoing Special Envoy
for Holocaust Remembrance and Combating Antisemitism.
A crowd of
pro-Palestine protestors was outside the convention centre main exit at the end
of the evening, requiring conference participants to leave by another door.
The two-day
conference, the first national event of its kind in Canada, was sponsored by
the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs (CIJA), with support from Jewish
Federations across Canada, including the Jewish Federation of Winnipeg.
