July 7, 2011
Ottawa, ON – On July 7th, Shimon Fogel, CEO of the Canadian Council for Israel and Jewish Advocacy (CIJA), issued the following statement in response to the publication of the final report of the Canadian Coalition to Combat Anti-Semitism:
“We are gratified that the Coalition’s report identifies a line beyond which criticism of Israel loses all semblance of fairness or reason. Such criticism is nothing less than an assault on Israel’s legitimacy as the homeland of the Jewish people. The report is therefore a significant document not just for Jewish Canadians, but for all Canadians. For as history has repeatedly proven, a society unsafe for Jews is ultimately unsafe for democracy.
We Canadians have every right to criticize particular policies of the government of Israel, our democratic friend and ally. But as this cross-party report confirms, we must recognize the denial of the Jewish people’s right to a national homeland as a modern version of a historic hatred – a disturbing new form of Anti-Semitism.
The Coalition’s report also verified the fact that many Canadian campuses have become a hotbed of toxic discourse and intimidation. The vulnerable position of students who support Israel – both Jewish and non-Jewish alike – must be confronted directly and without delay.”
The Canadian Council for Israel and Jewish Advocacy (CIJA) is now the spokesperson for all issues concerning the organized Canadian Jewish community, including those formerly handled by the Canadian Jewish Congress, the Canada-Israel Committee, and the Quebec-Israel Committee.
For more information, contact Steve McDonald at 647-270-8072.