Canada’s Politicians Fail To Act As The Country’s Antisemitism Crisis Worsens
Antisemitic incidents in Canada have skyrocketed by 124.6% since 2022
It seems that hardly a day goes by without another appalling story about antisemitism in Canada.
One week, a shooting at the Temple Emanu-El synagogue in Toronto. Then, more shootings, this time at the Beth Avraham Yoseph synagogue in Thornhill and at the Shaarei Shomayim in Toronto. Then, last weekend, the hateful anti-Israel Al Quds Day rally took place in Toronto, where an Islamist was seen making hand gestures that made it seem like he wanted to stab and behead Canadians and where attendees held grossly antisemitic signs.
It has been like this since October 7, 2023, and yet nothing has changed. Which begs the question: why?
In the past week, I spoke to two people to try and get answers to that question. Here is what they believe is driving the problem.
“The Time To Have Prevented It Was Oct. 8, 2023”
Georganne Burke, a member of the Jewish community who recently left Canada for the United States amid the rise in antisemitism, spoke to me about her concerns. You can read more about her move from Ottawa to Florida in a piece I wrote for National Review this past summer about Jews fleeing Canada for the United States.
For Burke, the shootings at the synagogues were personal, because one of them was the synagogue she attended when she lived in Toronto.
“It was very personal to me…. I have many, many friends who go to synagogue there. My daughters both used to live literally around the corner,” she said.
Burke shared deep frustration with the Canadian authorities, including law enforcement, the Carney government, the Ford government, and Toronto Mayor Olivia Chow.
“I’m so enraged with the City of Toronto, the police there, the provincial officials who have responsibility for this, and the federal government that has responsibility for this. I can’t begin to tell you how angry I am. I’m past the point of feeling bad. I’m past the point of being upset. I’m way beyond that.”
“Olivia Chow… all of a sudden, she’s worried about this. She spoke up for the first time in a long time about this. But I don’t believe her. I don’t believe her because she has proven by her actions, her affiliations, and her words that she does not actually care about our community.”
Burke believes political correctness, or what many call “woke” culture, has been a factor in Canadian politicians choosing not to take concrete actions on antisemitism in Canada, leading to the situation we are in today.
Many members of the Jewish community also believe political leaders have been hesitant to take concrete action against antisemitism, aside from the occasional statement. And even when they do occasionally speak out, they often say something to the tune of “we condemn antisemitism and Islamophobia.” This comes despite the fact that Jews in Canada are often terrorized by radical Islamists. During a press conference outside one of the targeted synagogues, a Toronto Star journalist asked an official if they were worried about an increase in Islamophobia following the synagogue shooting.
“(They say) in the name of political correctness and in the name of wokeness, ‘Oh, well, we have to protect the free speech rights and the human rights of these (antisemitic protesters).’ No, you don’t. They’re not exercising free speech and human rights. They’re violating the free speech rights and the human rights of another segment of Canadian society.”
Burke worries it may now be too late to reverse course.
“I don’t know how you put these things back into the box, close it up, and get rid of it. I just don’t know.”
“You can’t prevent it now. You can only prosecute it. The time to have prevented it was October 8, 2023, or maybe even before that, maybe in 2021 when they were campaigning against Jews. This is a longstanding Canadian problem. Antisemitism is not new to Canada. You can look back historically and see that it was one of the more antisemitic places.”
“We Need To Have A Serious Conversation About Immigration.”
Dimpee Brar, Director of Engagement for Allies for a Strong Canada, a pro-Israel group, believes that in addition to being despicable attacks on Canada’s Jews, the synagogue shootings represent an attack on Western civilization.
“It now seems to be more dangerous to be a Jew in Canada than in any other G7 nation. The war has really been brought home. But this (is also) an expression of anti-Western animus.”
“Our enemies understand something that many of our citizens are now asleep to, which is the fact that the most visible expression of the Biblical inheritance of our nation are our churches and synagogues. That’s why churches must burn, and that’s why synagogues must be attacked. It is an attack on the West. This is a war on the West that is taking place here.”
Like Burke, Brar believes politicians have failed and have allowed a two-tier justice system to emerge.
“We have the most feckless politicians I have ever come across. This is a bipartisan problem,” she said.
“I would say that there is a no tier basically. Where were the police officers that night? Have we not seen a synagogue already being attacked? They only acted after the fact. Three synagogues in one week. These are not isolated incidents. These are not accidents. These are the opening salvos of a campaign against the West.”
Beyond law enforcement, Brar believes there also needs to be a conversation about immigration.
“I will always say that the one thing no one is speaking about is immigration. We need to have a serious conversation about immigration. And it’s not as much about immigration as it is about national security.”