Trudeau at National Forum on Combatting Antisemitism by Michael Geist
I was pleased to attend the National Forum on Combatting Antisemitism in Ottawa yesterday. It is easy to be cynical: the event came at least a year late, even reassuring words of support (Prime Minister Justin Trudeau again declared that “no one in Canada should be afraid to call themselves a Zionist. I am a Zionist”) lose their impact when action repeatedly does not align with those words, and the absence of Conservative MPs made the event more political than needed. Further, I remain skeptical that everyone is ready for the hard action of implementing and enforcing antisemitism standards in schools, universities, and workplaces as well as consistently applying the anti-hate laws already on the books.
But with those caveats, there was a genuine shift underway at yesterday’s event. First, there was an acknowledgement from important voices that they had failed the Jewish community in Canada. We heard police officers admit that they had needed a push to address antisemitism and had been too slow to respond. We heard university representatives acknowledge that they had failed Jewish students and faculty, who have felt unsafe on campuses for months. And we heard from the government that much more is needed to combat antisemitism in Canada. These admissions don’t solve anything, but they represent a start.
Second, the emphasis was repeatedly on action, not words. Mark Sandler presented a paper from the Alliance of Canadians Combatting Antisemitism that identifies dozens of action items for all levels of government and leading institutions. The paper sends the message that supportive statements aren’t nearly enough. Real action is needed and there are readily available strategies for doing so. Further, Deborah Lyons, the special envoy for antisemitism, gave an exceptional talk focused on taking action. Lyons emphasized that the debate was over: the IHRA definition has been adopted by governments in Canada and around the world and many countries have been interested in the Canadian government’s handbook to IHRA adoption. What is needed now, she said, is to move beyond “hesitation and confusion” by acting with courage to combat antisemitism.
Third, the comments from political and organizational leaders suggested that antisemitism in Canada had become deeply personal for many. That is obviously true for members of the Jewish community, many of whom told personal incidents that demonstrated how antisemitism has left few Jewish Canadians untouched. But it notably was also true for many non-Jewish speakers – politicians, law enforcement, and leading organizations – who all related stories from their own experience over the past 18 months that had made antisemitism tangible and personally disturbing.
If the message of the day was action, those stories reinforced that the rise of antisemitism on our streets, campuses, and communities are not just a problem for the Jewish community, but a danger to all Canadians. Words have failed to stem the tide of Jew hate in Canada and we have all paid the price. It is long past time for action.