The Growing Surge of Antisemitism

"The voices of the vast majority of Canadians -- including faith, business and political leaders -- need to be heard before it's too late."

"All Canadians must come together against this growing surge of antisemitism."

Deborah Lyons, Special Envoy on Holocaust Remembrance and Combating Antisemitism

"Just this past week, we have been reminded about the terrible impact these occurrences can have on our communities."

"[Signs in front of a Jewish day school and synagogue were lit on fire.] The school and synagogue were not damaged."

Toronto Police Chief Myron Demkiw

"For far too long, Jews in Canada have felt under attack as acts of vandalism targeting Jewish sites and hateful rhetoric play out on our streets."

Michael Levitt, president, CEO, Friends of Simon Wiesenthal Center

"The recent acts of unacceptable vandalism targeting the Jewish community in Vaughan, Markham and Toronto need to be denounced in the strongest possible terms."

Vaughan Mayor Steven Del Duca

Police say they are looking for a lone suspect wearing a Halloween costume who targeted multiple businesses and Jewish spaces in Thornhill July 29, 2024.

 

An epidemic of hateful rhetoric against Jews, propagandist 'pro-Palestinian' marches, fire-bombing and defacing of synagogues, Jewish social centres and Jewish parochial schools, as well as private Jewish-owned businesses have violated the peace and security of Canadian cities, municipal offices, and above all, Jewish communities throughout the country. 

 

Jews are being intimidated, threatened and terrorized while government authorities at all levels have remained unmoved to act forcefully to restore public order and civil decorum.

Hate crime investigations and charges have increased markedly across the country. Toronto Police Chief Myron Demkiw briefed news sources on the numbers of calls that his officers have been taking, as a result. To date, for 2024, antisemitic incidents account for 45 percent of all hate-crime reports in a city where Jews account for less than two percent of the Canadian population.

"The escalation of violent, anti-Jewish hate in Greater Toronto has reached a critical point -- and demands strong actions from authorities", a joint statement -- from Jeff Rosenthal, chair of UJA Federation of Grater Toronto, and Adam Minsky, president and CEO of the organization -- read, urging remedial action in view of the fact that one location alone has been targeted five times by antisemitic vandals.

After graffiti was discovered on a stone fence beside a synagogue and Jewish day school in Alberta's largest city, the Calgary Police Service hate-crimes unit is investigating. Graffiti, including a Palestinian flag and the mantra "Free Palestine", and "the flood is coming" were prominent. The words are sinister, referring to the Al-Aqsa Flood, the name given by Hamas to the October 7 invasion of southern Israel by Hamas that "emphasizes the insidious intent of the graffiti", noted the Calgary Jewish Federation.

"As thousands gathered amongst the graffiti, Calgary's Jewish community and our allies showed we will not back down in the face of hate", commented the Calgary Jewish Federation. 

 

York Regional Police say they are searching for a suspect believed to have worn a Halloween costume while spraying what investigators have called antisemitic graffiti in Vaughan and Markham Monday. (York Regional Police)

 

Just north of Toronto in Vaughan, where the majority of Canada's Jewish population lives, police are searching for an individual wearing black robes and a mask of the Ghostface killer from the Scream movie who spray-painted "Free Palestine" on a number of businesses and a synagogue. On social media, images show "Free Palestine" graffiti on a window at the Gates of Zion synagogue, at a Starbucks and on a sign for the UJA Federation.

York Regional Police are in possession of a video showing the robed figure painting a sign. Police had blurred the words, that had been painted, but it was still evident that "Gaza" had been written on the sign. In Edmonton, "Free Gaza", "F--k Israel" and "Israel kills babies" were reported to have been spray painted along the Victoria Promenade overlooking the city's river valley. 

A week ago police made an announcement of seeking assistance from the public to identify a man who had written "hate-motivated" messages on a wall in north-central Edmonton. With the argument that to release what had been written would be harmful, since it "could potentially compromise the investigation", Police withheld the message, other than indicating it "was directed toward the Jewish community".

Statistics Canada released new data on hate crimes a week earlier. Their data show that 70 percent of all religiously motivated hate crimes were directed at the Jewish faith. 900 incidents were reported to police targeting Jews, while 1,284 hate crimes in total targeted Canadians of faith. When a Jewish school bus owned by a day school was burned, Marco Mendecino, a Liberal member of Parliament wrote: "Police are investigating, but antisemitism will continue increasing until there are serious consequences for violent, dangerous hate crimes".

A synagogue on Yonge Street was one of several buildings vandalized in Markham and Vaughan on Monday, which York police are investigating as a hate-motivated incident. (Submitted by Michael Katz)