ICYMI Lederman: Antisemitic Messi conspiracy theories constitute unsportsmanlike conduct

2026/07/24 Leave a comment

Sigh:

….It’s one thing to lose your mind over a soccer tournament – healthy, even, to immerse yourself in sports and take a breather from the horrors of the world. But this lunacy is evidence of a world infected by antisemitism: where even a good news story – the astonishing prowess of a once-in-a-lifetime player – gets squished into a crazed antisemitic conspiracy theory. Even though the guy is not even Jewish.

“Football unites the world,” the FIFA motto goes.

Not quite, reality has responded. 

After an Israeli politician complained about Mr. Lamal hoisting the Palestinian flag last spring, claiming that this fostered hatred, Spain’s Prime Minister countered that those who consider waving a national flag to be hatred had either “lost their minds or have been blinded by ignominy.” 

There’s a lot of that going around. 

It is impossible, especially in this climate, to hold a sports tournament in a vacuum, completely divorced from the politics of the day. But this – using the World Cup to spread antisemitic conspiracy theories and in the process, demean its greatest player – is so messed up. A beautiful game used for such an ugly purpose.

Source: Antisemitic Messi conspiracy theories constitute unsportsmanlike conduct

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Coren | It can be healthy to debate Israel and Palestine but on the ground little will change

2026/07/21 Leave a comment

Good discussion regarding the Church of England’s reference to genocide:

…In a highly controversial vote, they encouraged congregations to read and engage with “Moment of Truth: Faith in a Time of Genocide,” a report by Palestinian Christians that accuses Israel of genocide and describes the country as a “colonial enterprise.” In other words, the report wasn’t adopted as church policy but accepted as a “heartfelt expression of the lived experience of Palestinian Christians.”

The country’s chief rabbi described the decision as “shameful” and a “sad day for Jewish-Christian relations” and numerous Anglicans have complained that the language used is unnecessarily provocative, one-sided, and taken directly out of a Marxist playbook.

That’s harsh because Archbishop of Canterbury Sarah Mullally and fellow bishops have repeatedly and passionately condemned antisemitism, and during the debate she spoke of “the pain and trauma of the appalling 7 October attacks” that remains, “a daily reality for Jewish people in Israel and around the world.”

While Palestinians certainly and understandably feel as if they’re constant victims of colonialism, Zionism itself was an ideology produced by desperation rather than a policy based on exploitation. The 1290 expulsion from England was one of many throughout Europe, accompanied by mass slaughter, terror, discrimination, and eventually the Holocaust. Jews in Arab countries were expelled from where they’d lived for centuries between 1948 and the 1970s. Where else could all of these people go apart from to a land where they have proven historic and genetic links?

As for genocide, we often hear that scholars of the subject believe that the Gaza campaign and the general Israeli approach to Palestine is indeed genocidal. Actually, there’s a profound division among experts. While Israel’s treatment of the Palestinians is often unjust and the military campaign in Gaza appallingly costly, does Israel seriously want to murder every single Palestinian wherever they live?

The most infamous example of genocide was the Nazi attempt to eliminate the Jews as a people and expunge them from human consciousness. It was industrial mass slaughter and had nothing to do with national security or territorial expansion. Surely, we can criticize Israeli actions without employing such language.

Perhaps if the Israel-Palestine issue had been more thoroughly and openly discussed in the past, and if churches had had the courage to do so, the narrative would now be more considered, but some of those currently so outraged by the synod decision were in the past the fiercest opponents of any sort of dissent. Yes, it’s true that Israel is treated differently than other countries by its opponents, but also by its supporters. Double standards do have that tendency.

The fuss over all this will continue for a while but on the ground in Israel and Palestine it will change little. Those at the synod were good people rather than a performative street mob and genuinely do seek peace and progress. They also look to a Jewish Messiah who told his followers to shock the world with their ideas and guaranteed them that it wouldn’t be easy. He preached all this largely to a Jewish people living in a Jewish land, and the irony of it all should be obvious.

Something has to change but language matters very much indeed.

Source: Opinion | It can be healthy to debate Israel and Palestine but on the ground little will change

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‘Something concrete’: Why Asian-Canadians were moved to denounce antisemitism

2026/07/14 Leave a comment

Of note:

In the emerging movement of non-Jews speaking out against rampant antisemitism in Canada, Fo Niemi and his coalition of Asian community groups in Montreal stand out as veterans.

When a city synagogue was firebombed last month, the Centre for Research-Action on Race Relations (CRARR) brought together a coalition of Asian communities – ranging from Cambodian, Chinese, Vietnamese and Filipino – to denounce antisemitism and support the Jewish community.

These were, in his words, “small steps to heal, bond and build solidarity.”

Niemi, a co-founder and executive director of the nonprofit, said the goal was “to do something concrete. We don’t want to just talk. We want to build things that could be lasting, so it can be better evidence of how much we have in common.”

CRARR, whose mandate is to promote racial equality and combat racism, also held a multi-faith, multi-ethnic dedication service on June 30, to honour Constable Mohamed Lamine Benredouane, killed while responding to a June 22 shooting in Côte-des-Neiges, and 68-year-old bystander Michel Moshe Mizrahi, who was killed in the same incident….

Source: ‘Something concrete’: Why Asian-Canadians were moved to denounce antisemitism

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PEN America: A Free-Speech Meltdown

2026/07/14 Leave a comment

Sad:

…Maybe the most revealing aspect of this eruption, though, is just how little it took to set it off. Thursday’s article nodded to the curtailed freedoms of Israeli and Jewish writers without taking any ideological side. It was far from a battle cry or a shift in priorities. It was just a way of acknowledging, in the measured but principled language common to PEN America, that the past three years of discourse have had an effect on a large group of writers. For anyone who has spoken to Israeli or Jewish artists—as I have—this is undeniable; you hear it everywhere. This reality does not neutralize the cause of pro-Palestinian writers or the suffering in Gaza and elsewhere. The fact that the article was perceived that way, and that it led to the resignation of a president, tells us all a great deal about the hair-trigger moment we live in, and about the precarity of the liberal principles on which PEN America was founded.  

Source: A Free-Speech Meltdown

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Gail Asper isn’t visibly angry about ‘Nakba’ exhibit. But she’s resolute about fixing the rights museum

2026/07/08 Leave a comment

More on the CMHR Nakba controversy:

…“As a national federal museum,” she says, “there’s a very high standard here. This isn’t a community-centred exhibit. I fought for the designation, for this to be a federal institution with all the imprimatur and gravitas that title entails, because I wanted to show Canadians that this isn’t just the opinion of Izzy Asper or, you know, me or anybody else. This is something that matters to Canadians, that human rights are so important to Canadians, and Stephen Harper was the prime minister that finally delivered this as the national federal museum.

“It feels intentional that the Jewish voice and connection to this museum is deliberately being diminished,” she observes. Her phone and inbox have been “exploding” since the announcement. Supporters who trusted the Aspers to create something intellectually honest feel betrayed.

“The whole point of the museum is to bring people together,” she explains. “The whole point is to have dialogue and debate. So the whole point of this exhibit, as I said to everybody, was that there are hard truths on both sides. Let’s have all the hard truths and let’s have the rational, quiet, respectful debate the museum was intended to inspire.”

“But when you obliterate one side of the narrative so egregiously, obviously, and so ideologically and intentionally, you lose that trust from one part of the participants. And that’s where I really am so disappointed in the museum. They didn’t have to do it this way.”

She made repeated efforts to steer things differently, including a presentation to the board six weeks before opening. As an honorary board member, she reminded them of the museum’s mandate and warned about fanning antisemitism at a fraught time. There was no meaningful response.

“I just thought this is heartless,” she says. “There is no compassion for the place that we have now found ourselves in the Jewish community.”

Then, one week before opening, the sole Jewish board member, Mark Berlin, resigned. “I think he was gaslit,” Gail says. Berlin, a respected human rights lawyer who had lived and worked in Ramallah, called her before stepping down. “It was a very sad conversation,” but she understood.”…

Source: Gail Asper isn’t visibly angry about ‘Nakba’ exhibit. But she’s resolute about fixing the rights museum

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Foran: A quarter-century after his death, how is Mordecai Richler’s work remembered?

2026/07/07 Leave a comment

Always interesting to see what happens with the passage of time. I remember well the controversies, have read many of his books, seen the film adaptations of Duddy Kravitz and Barney’s Version, recall that my mother felt uncomfortable with his portrayal of Canadian Jews. Still worth reading IMO:

…English Canada, in contrast, has not kept faith in its “hero.” As he acknowledged, Richler was a chronicler of his times, and times – along with literary tastes – change. His voice, masculine and provocative, could tilt into the intemperate, especially when pressing a joke or grievance. Our age is quick to judge modes of expression declared deviant from our own progressive standards. 

Finally, nearly all literary criticism now emanates from within our universities, and with few exceptions, the professors just haven’t been interested.

Time usually sorts things out for artists. Either the work endures or it doesn’t. Mordecai Richler had his day and may have another up ahead. The pleasures of this erudite, funny, deeply moral writer are many, and veteran readers will envy newcomers to his books, especially the novels. Meanwhile, the invitation of Solomon Gursky Was Here stands. 

Source: A quarter-century after his death, how is Mordecai Richler’s work remembered?

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Why Is Canada’s Refugee Board relying on Francesca Albanese?: Randolph Hahn for Inside Policy

2026/07/06 Leave a comment

Reasonable question that deserves an answer. Difference between her official reports and activism? Institutional capture?

Canada’s Immigration and Refugee Board (IRB) decides who receives refugee protection — and for many successful claimants, a pathway to permanent residence and citizenship. Those decisions depend in part on country information the IRB makes available to its decision-makers as authoritative background material.

That is why one name appearing in the IRB’s National Documentation Packages should alarm anyone who expects Canada’s refugee system to rely on balanced and credible sources: the highly controversial Francesca Albanese, United Nations Special Rapporteur on the Occupied Palestinian Territories.

Albanese has become one of the world’s most polarizing UN officials. She has been sanctioned by the United States, condemned by several democratic governments, and publicly rebuked by Canada itself. In 2024, Canada’s Permanent Mission in Geneva described her remarks as “unacceptable and incompatible with her duty of impartiality” and added that “antisemitism has no place anywhere.”

Yet, while the Canadian government has distanced itself from Albanese, the IRB continues to include her in reports in its official country documentation for Israel and for what it characterizes as the Occupied Palestinian Territories. After experienced Canadian immigration lawyers formally challenged the decision, the Board reviewed the matter — and chose to keep her reports in place….

Source: Why Is Canada’s Refugee Board relying on Francesca Albanese?: Randolph Hahn for Inside Policy

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ICYMI – Jack Jedwab: Antisemitism flies in the face of Canadian multiculturalism

2026/07/03 Leave a comment

Agreed:

…“Outside Israel, Canada has one of the highest proportions of Holocaust survivors in the world — part of a community that has made a profound mark on this country. When that history is treated as expendable, Jewish belonging becomes easier to question as well. For that reason, Canadian Multiculturalism Day should be an occasion not only to celebrate diversity, but also to recognize the challenges multiculturalism faces when prejudice is rationalized, historical memory is minimized, or minority communities are made vulnerable by conflicts beyond Canada’s borders.

That is why it is important to guard against those who would appropriate Canadian Multiculturalism Day in support of political agendas. A day meant to celebrate pluralism and strengthen mutual respect should not be turned into an occasion for advancing political narratives that decontextualize history or invite Canadians to view one community through the grievances of another. Multiculturalism is not served by selective memory, nor by historical accounts that intensify suspicion and fuel resentment. Ideally its objective should be to reduce intercultural tension, not to exacerbate it.”

Source: Jack Jedwab: Antisemitism flies in the face of Canadian multiculturalism

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Counterpoint: The Muslim Association of Canada’s recent conference was about faith and community

2026/07/02 2 Comments

Valid critique of some of the Postmedia reporting and commentary:

…There are 50 entries visible in the word cloud. The three words that dominate the image, rendered in the largest fonts because word clouds scale by frequency, are “United,” “Justice” and “Strong.” Those were the words Canadian Muslim youth chose most. Below them, in slightly smaller font, sits words such as “Peace,” “Equality,” “Equity,” “Freedom,” “Safety,” “Diverse,” “Supportive” and “Impactful.” These are the words of a generation thinking seriously about how to contribute to this country.

One of the entries, the one that has triggered conversation on social media, was “Jew free.” The facilitator did not notice it. A Juno News contributor was present at the convention. The photograph was taken by Juno News. Juno News did not call it out at the moment, when there was an opportunity to do so. Juno News then published it, leading to public controversy.

The phrase “Jew free” is offensive and hurtful to Jewish Canadians, to Muslim Canadians, and to anyone committed to a pluralistic society. Neither MAC nor the Muslim community should be defined by an anonymous submission to an open platform, but we will always name hatred for what it is.

For greater clarity, the phrase is unequivocally against Islamic teachings and, as such, it does not represent the values of the Muslim Association of Canada (MAC), the values taught at our convention or the values of Canadian Muslims. It is also worth stating something that should be obvious but has been obscured in this coverage: antisemitism and Islamophobia are not competing hatreds. They often travel together. Any organization genuinely committed to combating hate understands that you cannot separate them. MAC understands this all too well.

This is not the only misrepresentation of the convention, as we see it. Sessions of the convention were recorded, clipped and stripped of context. Specific remarks by speakers that directly contradict the narrative being constructed were not reported. For example, in one session, a speaker demonstrated a platform that helps citizens draft letters to elected representatives. The session was then framed as something threatening. The tool the speaker demonstrated is functionally identical to what environmental organizations, labour unions and faith-based advocacy groups across the political spectrum use every day, but apparently becomes sinister when Muslims use it….

Source: Counterpoint: The Muslim Association of Canada’s recent conference was about faith and community

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Canadian Museum for Human Rights made ‘error’ in Nakba exhibit presentation, minister says, Others defend as site for solidarity

2026/07/02 2 Comments

Of note:

Heritage Minister Marc Miller said Monday the Canadian Museum for Human Rights in Winnipeg made “an error” in its presentation of an exhibit about displaced Palestinians.

In an interview with The Canadian Press on Monday, Mr. Miller said the museum should change how it portrays the current conflict between Israel and Palestinians and update the museum’s oversight.

“It isn’t up to me to speak to, or insert myself in, the curation of any particular exhibit. But manifestly, you cannot deny the fact that this is an exhibit that is born in controversy – and perhaps some of it could have been avoided,” Mr. Miller said.

The museum says it is collecting feedback but is defending its phrasing in the exhibit.

In an interview Monday, Mr. Miller said he visited the Winnipeg museum Thursday morning and was troubled by how the exhibit portrayed the conflict that started in October, 2023.

On Oct. 7, 2023, Palestinian militants from Hamas – which Canada has listed as a terrorist entity for more than two decades – and its partners killed 1,200 civilians and soldiers in Israel. That attack prompted Israel to bombard the Gaza Strip in a relentless war that has killed roughly 73,000 people in the territory, according to data sourced in part from Gaza’s Hamas-controlled health ministry.

Mr. Miller said there are flaws in the museum exhibit that should be addressed.

“There are some words in there that are regrettable. Not identifying Hamas as a terrorist organization is, I think, a failure. And not clearly stating that, for example, Hamas intended to kill Jews is, I think, an unfortunate error in curation and should be rectified,” Mr. Miller said.

The exhibit, which opened to the public Saturday, focuses on the Nakba – Arabic for catastrophe – the forcible displacement of about 750,000 Palestinians from the region during the 1948 Arab-Israeli war.

Museum spokeswoman Amanda Gaudes said Mr. Miller’s office has shared his concerns and they will be part of “an established content revision process.”…

Source: Canadian Museum for Human Rights made ‘error’ in Nakba exhibit presentation, minister says

The Canadian Museum for Human Rights’ Nakba exhibit can serve as a site for solidarity

…The exhibit’s historic opening was an occasion for people from the Palestinian and Jewish communities in Canada to convene. There were many shared meals and receptions in the museum, Winnipeg restaurants and local community halls where Nakba and Holocaust survivors and their descendants broke bread together.

Having seen the exhibit and the processes behind its creation, the opening of this exhibit in a major human rights institution feels historic. It is a breakthrough for challenging the Palestine exception, and a stepping stone to deepening solidarity across difference.

To that end, all Canadians owe a debt of gratitude and respect to the Canadian Museum for Human Rights for sharing this exhibit. It may have been difficult, but it validates Palestinian experiences, and, in so doing, reaffirms the first article of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights: that all humans are born free and equal in dignity and rights.

Source: The Canadian Museum for Human Rights’ Nakba exhibit can serve as a site for solidarity

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