City Refuses To Allow Swastika Removal From Park

On August 17th, 2017, Corey Fleischer, of Erasing Hate, was called by a concerned citizen, regarding a swastika prominently displayed in a park. The park is Parc des ancres, in the town of Pointe-des-Cascades, located north of Vaudreuil, Quebec.

When Corey arrived, he found two swastikas to be on a large anchor displayed in the park. He observed that the city had taken care of this anchor, repainting it (beige, black, and white) and the swastikas were engraved into the metal - and painted a prominent black against the white background.

Photo: Corey Fleischer, Facebook

Corey wants the anchor removed altogether, but in the interim, was satisfied to simply obliterate the swastikas. As he began to paint over the first swastika, the mayor of the city showed up and told him to stop.

As Corey said:

 He couldn't understand why I was so upset, and why I was removing the paint that covered the Swastika. He then told me that if I didn't leave the park, he would call the police and charge me with "Destruction of Property."

Corey did not back down, and a discussion ensued when police were called. You can see it in the video below:




Corey had to leave the park without taking care of the hate symbol.

Later in the week, Corey posted this photo of the plaque under what he calls "Swastika Anchor".

Courtesy Corey Fleischer, Facebook

What adds to the disturbing nature of this entire story is that someone in this city felt proud to display a Nazi "souvenir" with a symbol of hate out in the open, a park, where kids play and families gather.

There are many who support Corey and are disgusted by the city not only endorsing but protecting this hate symbol.  But the most shocking results are the comments his Facebook post has received.

There were those who tried to argue that the swastika is a sign of peace, originally. There were others who argued that these particular swastikas were not painted on an angle, and therefore were not symbols of hate. And still others - too many, in my opinion - who tried to debate that the anchor predated World War II and was not intended to offend.

It is impossible to comprehend how anyone can defend this hate speech, and not experience the visceral, gut-punched revulsion that most decent humans do when confronted by it.

It begged the question: is a swastika any less offensive if on an item that was not intended to persecute the Jews?

The answer is very clear: there is never going to be any other meaning assigned to the swastika than the one it became in 1930s and 40s Europe: anti-Semitism, hate, and persecution of the Jewish people.

For those who claim - as has been reported -  that the swastika was painted on a British anchor, I say this: swastikas that are spray painted on a Canadian brick wall are no less hateful than those on Nazi flags and armbands worn by the S.S. Therefore, the anchor and its origins do not soften the meaning either.

The British anchors that bore the swastika before Nazis made it into their flag were not painted in the Hitlerian color scheme. They were monotone. The one in Pointe-des-Cascades was very freshly painted black, on a white circle; that is clearly Nazi-related.

But here's the thing: the historical context, the date, and the meaning of the swastika when that anchor was created are no longer relevant. The symbol has been forever perverted by Nazis who marched under it while they set out to humiliate, isolate, torture, murder, and burn the bodies of six million Jews - and never can the swastika be seen in any other light.

Even the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum, in Washington D.C. states that "By the time the Nazis gained control of Germany, the connotations of the swastika had forever changed." (emphasis is mine)

We have seen neo-Nazis marching on a city in the USA just this month, carrying swastika flags; we cannot deny that the symbol continues to be anti-Semitic.

For those who derisively sneered that perhaps no Nazi memorabilia, or Holocaust artifacts should ever be seen, I say this: there are places for those items. Yad Vashem. The Montreal Holocaust Memorial Museum. The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. The myriad museums around the world where one can go for the express purpose of learning about the Holocaust, its atrocities, and its outcomes, so that education can ensue and the world can continue to remember the horrors of Nazi Germany. Museums are designed by those who know how to teach, properly exhibit, and provide explanations for the items curated within. A park is not a museum.

For the one incredibly obtuse, disrespectful commenter who suggested to me that Auschwitz be bulldozed ("to the ground" because it was made by Germans), I say this: missing the point is a sign of deep ignorance, or cognitive dissonance. Deflection is a sign of defensiveness. If he was defending his hate, it was blatant.

Ignorance will breed more ignorance, and when we say Never Forget, it's a literal mantra. Those who do not remember history are doomed to repeat it.

No one is saying that all remnants of World War II be erased forever. Quite the opposite. There are places for such memorabilia, to educate, to witness, and those places are where visitors expect to be confronted by symbols of hate and horror.

But a park is not a museum - no matter how much its defenders call it thus;  and it is certainly not a place for swastikas - most especially not when they are freshly painted, defended, and protected by the mayor of the city in which they are located.

Fleischer has retained the legal services of a lawyer who will represent him if further action is taken against him (thus far, none has been instigated). I have no information as to how he will proceed from here, but what we know about Corey Fleischer is that he doesn't give up. He is a crusader against Hate of all kinds: against religious groups (ALL religions), races, sexual orientation, gender, nationality. He has made it his Mission to Erase Hate wherever it is displayed, and there's no way this will continue without his pressing the matter.

The fact that the Mayor Gilles Santerre (of Pointe-des-Cascades) couldn't empathize with Corey, or every other Jewish person to whom that symbol represents hate and suffering, is disturbing - to say the least. That he would protect it, even after Corey explained its meaning, is even more of a concern.

There are only two reasons someone would be so laissez-faire about a swastika: ignorance, or anti-Semitism.

Neither is a great quality, especially in a mayor of a municipality.

There should be no further ignorance, after being taught the reason for Corey Fleischer's desire to remove the swastikas. He explained, in the video above, quite clearly, what the symbol represents. The mayor should already know what the Holocaust was.

So, we're left with the other choice: anti-Semitism. Someone painted meticulously over those swastikas, to emphasize them. I find it hard to believe they didn't know what the symbol means. And so, we're faced with the mayor of a small town, his public works employees, and perhaps city councilors who are willfully allowing the definitive symbol of anti-Semitism to glaringly greet anyone who walks in that park.

This incident is a very slippery slope. I believe that if we do not succeed in getting the mayor to remove this hateful item from the public's view, we are going to see many more of these excuses made for other hate symbols that will pop up - not just in Montreal, not just in Canada, but perhaps worldwide.

Meanwhile, as of Monday, August 21, 2017, the following press release appeared on the city's website:

From Pointe-des-Cascades website

The mayor has decided to install new plates, explaining the history of the symbols and the artifact.

Not good enough. See, it doesn't matter what the swastika used to mean. It has forever been changed, and will never be seen as anything other than a symbol of Nazism and anti-Semitism. No amount of explanation will change that. Any Jewish person confronted by it will never be placated by a weak explanation of what it used to mean.

It means one thing, now and forevermore.

I sincerely hope the mayor of Pointe-des-Cascades - M. Gilles Santerre - will reconsider.

Perhaps he can meet with educators on the issue; perhaps a town hall in which he learns, and hears from survivors, families, researchers, those who work on behalf of combatting anti-Semitism. I would be more than happy to speak with him, as I know Corey Fleischer and others would as well.

But this cannot remain as is. No press release, no explanation, no historical context will ever take away the fact that the symbol was twisted into one of hate and cannot be unseen as such.

Education is key. It is not present in Pointe-des-Cascades.

Rebel Media/Fox News's Gavin McInnes Must Face Consequences For His Anti-Semitic Rantings

Recently, one of the founders of The Rebel - an online, conservative media outlet formed when Sun News folded in Canada - took several other contributors and went to Israel on a "fact-finding mission". Ezra Levant, Faith Goldy, Sheila Gunn Reid, and Gavin McInnes went to Israel to report on everything from "the Israeli security fence, to Israel's border with Syria, and even the settlements in the West Bank."

What has emerged from the trip - namely from one of its participants - is nothing short of horrifying.

Gavin McInnes - described, in his Wikipedia entry, as "an English-Canadian writer, actor, comedian" and who appears frequently on Fox News, and The Blaze - both conservative media outlets in the USA - is a regular contributor to The Rebel. He has a show that airs four times weekly, and is accessible only through the "premium" content on the site (paid members only).

Up until now, I have seen some of his videos, and watched him in reports, and he's seemed fairly innocuous in his humor and reports.

But a report emerged, from a website called Canadaland, an audience-funded site and podcast, and whose goals are self-described as: "our primary focus is on media criticism and media reporting."

(I believe, in this day and age of blogging and journalism blurring lines, it's important to have media watchdogs. How they are policed is another story altogether.)

The report is called "We Watched Gavin McInnes's Full Anti-Semitic Rant So You Don't Have To". The author of the article in question is Jonathan Goldsbie,

Goldsbie paid the $6.95 USD in order to watch the full video. The reason he did so was that McInnes released a clip in which he made some very inflammatory statements including:

• I'm becoming an anti-Semite;

• A "clarification" of Holocaust denials: "...the Yad Vashem tour guide goes, 'you know, and there are people who think that this didn't happen.' And I felt myself defending the super-far-right Nazis, just because I was sick of so much brainwashing. And I felt like going, 'well, they never said it didn't happen. What they're saying is that it was much less than six million and that they starved to death and they weren't gassed.'" 

He also states how "obsessed" Jews are with the Holocaust adding, "I don't know if it's healthy to dwell."

When two well-known KKK/Neo-Nazi activists (David Duke, and Richard Spencer) tweeted their support for McInnes, McInnes struck back. He put out a quick video explaining that the released clip - in which he does, actually, state, not to take this out of context - was taken out of context. He even goes so far as to tell the two alt-right men that he doesn't like Nazis - "I like Jews."

When Goldsbie saw that, he paid to watch the entire video to see if, perhaps, McInnes was just - as he defensively stated - repeating the common attitudes of neo-Nazis and if the context were different.

What Goldsbie found was far worse. The almost-hour-long video was filled with McInnes's own views about Jews, other racist comments - about Asian women, for example (too offensive to reproduce here), and generalizing about Jews in ways that reveal a deeply prejudiced attitude this man holds against the Jewish people.

It's offensive, it's profoundly disturbing, and even the excerpts in Goldsbie's article made me physically ill. And as Goldsbie concluded, there were more atrocious statements even he could not reproduce in his report.

To add to this already-sickening report, when McInnes first put out the video, he titled it "10 Things I Hate About Jews."

He tweeted out the link (I have whited out the profanity):

Shortly thereafter, Ezra Levant retweeted The Rebel's official account (which had tweeted out the link, without McInnes's colorful editorializing).

The name of the video was changed in the link - but not, as Jesse Brown reported, in the video.

We fight, every single day, against those whose attitudes range from ignorant to outright anti-Semitic. We fight against those who deny the Holocaust, question what happened and how it happened, and even in the face of overwhelming proof, still insist that six million Jews were not exterminated in death camps.

Why are we now fighting a purported pro-Israel media outlet whose very founder is Jewish, and whose conservative ideals are supposed to support Israel, her people, her history, and the Jewish people worldwide?

Why is this going unchecked, after having been posted on March 8th, and has not been questioned?

Perhaps it is because there are many who would speak up but who don't pay the premium membership in order to gain access to such "premium content" as McInnes's hate speech.

Perhaps it is because too many people do not speak up.

But I do.

And now that it is public, now that we have a report from someone who has watched it, it has to be addressed. 

I call upon Brian Lilley, Ezra Levant, Faith Goldy, Sheila Gunn Reid, Mitch Wolfe - and any other Rebel contributors - to denounce McInnes. To make the video free to the public so that he can be judged on the merits of his hatred. To leave it up with a disclaimer that its contents are profoundly offensive and should not be taken as endorsed by The Rebel or anyone associated with it.

I call upon The Rebel to suspend - or better yet, fire - Gavin McInnes. He has revealed a side of himself that cannot be unseen, that cannot be discounted, and that must be addressed.

There should be an apology issued by the site, McInnes, and a statement made by the founders of The Rebel, to at least attempt to assuage the concerns of Jews who see this as yet another alt-right attempt to discredit Holocaust survivors, victims, their families, and the State of Israel - not to mention Jews worldwide.

I call upon members of The Rebel Media, and donors, to stand up and address this loudly. Do you support McInnes's anti-Semitism? If you don't, do you feel good about being a member of their site, paying for him to peddle his hate speech?

This cannot be left to fade away. It is now out there, and should be addressed.

If readers would like to contact the above, the links lead to their Facebook pages. You can also get in touch via Twitter:

Mitch Wolfe

Ezra Levant

Brian Lilley

Sheila Gunn Reid

Faith Goldy

The Rebel

Perhaps if enough people let them know how deeply upsetting this is, they will act.

Perhaps if enough members withdraw their donations and memberships, they will learn to address this head-on. Levant not only knew about it - he and their main Twitter account re-tweeted in order to disseminate the link.

If it is only clicks they care about, they've done well. If it is their integrity? They have fallen tragically far from the mark.

My next move will be to write Fox, and The Blaze, to alert them to this latest. They deserve to know, as both outlets purport to be pro-Israel as well.

I encourage you all to do the same.

We cannot stand by and allow anyone to disparage the memories of Holocaust victims, the dignity of the survivors, or the well-being of Jewish people everywhere. Clearly, we need to hold media outlets to that standard - and more.

The bell has been rung. Your move, Rebel Media.

Prime Minister Trudeau Remains Silent On McGill Student's Hate Speech

It's been a week since a McGill Student representative's tweet came to light. Asking his followers to "punch a Zionist today", Igor Sadikov has since deleted his Twitter account - but not much else. He doubled down on his remarks a day after a non-apology, and remains in his position of representing students.

His decision to remain as student rep is unfathomable. And yet, at a meeting of the SSMU (Students' Society of McGill University), he was confronted by students who wanted to know how their safety will be protected now that the story has gone wider.

Molly Harris posted publicly, on her Facebook page, exactly what happened in that meeting. Her post begins with the words: "I have never felt so targeted, disgusted, or disappointed in my life."

She goes on to describe what was said in that meeting, and what Sadikov said about Jews ("it is contested that Jews are an ethno-religious group.”. What is more disturbing is how he was greeted with cheers and applause from other students.

I urge you to read this young woman's statement - it is chilling that in this day and age, we are facing a threat whose author is so exposed, so identified - and so untouched by any hand of justice whatsoever.

Deleting his Twitter account? Issuing a non-apology in which he shamelessly tried to invoke his "Jewish heritage"?

Not good enough.

Just this past Monday, the SSMU voted - and rejected - the motion calling on Sadikov to resign from the student union. The motion was rejected in a 5-4 vote. Democracy at work, folks, but where's the justice?

Here's my bigger question: where are the adults in this situation?

In the past few days, a friend and I have been seeking adults to take some sort of stand on the matter. Jewish organizations like B'nai Brith and CIJA are on this case, and working to see what can be done so that students at McGill - and other Universities - can feel safe.

But where is the government?

Canada's former ambassador to Israel, Vivian Bercovici, posted this on her Facebook wall:

The student activist/hater McGill University student who tweeted recently, exhorting fellow haters to “punch a zionist today” continues to dig his hole. He tries to explain his incitement to violence as an expression of his distaste for Zionism. In other words, he opposes the existence of a Jewish state. But – he somehow understands this as being all about peace, love and anti-colonialism and not hatred or anti-semitism.
On the latter point, he invokes his own Jewish heritage. Shameless, disingenuous and downright disgusting. The fact that he is Jewish does not validate his uninformed and hate-filled views. The conspiracy theories espoused by Alice Walker are not more credible because she is American. This nasty piece of work, Mr. Sadikov, is a coward. He deleted the tweet that drew so much attention, and now says that he has not decided whether or not to resign from student government.
That someone so openly hate-filled and violent even has the option to continue screams out for a review of student governance policies. I’m also wondering……where is my Prime Minister Justin Trudeau? He – or one of his high profile Cabinet members – is usually quick to pounce on such disgraceful conduct and condemn it. Jews, Israelis and Zionists are living in a highly toxic environment. Why the silence from Ottawa? Why is this a non-event?

Just this week, Anthony Housefather - Liberal MP - posted this statement on behalf of him and colleague Michael Levitt:

We commend @AHousefather, @LevittMichael for noting that @theSSMU MUST censure Igor 'Punch a Zionist' Sadikov for inciting violence #cdnpoli pic.twitter.com/NGKd1c1SBg

— B'nai Brith Canada (@bnaibrithcanada) February 15, 2017

MPP Gila Martow, representing the Thornhill district of Ontario (the largest Jewish community in Canada) released this statement:


These statements are important because those with a platform can use their voices to raise awareness, and provoke action.

I must echo Ambassador Bercovici, who asks, where is Prime Minister Justin Trudeau?

We have seen PM Trudeau address other incidents - from the tragic, to the expressions of hate.

For example: following the Paris attacks in November of 2015, Trudeau dealt with the sharp uptick in hate crimes against Canadian mosques. Mosques were vandalized, anti-Muslim graffiti was spray-painted on an apartment complex wall, and a Muslim woman was the target of racial slurs, her hijab tugged by the attackers. Serious enough to be criminal, but no serious bodily harm committed. And certainly, unacceptable.

He swiftly condemned those attacks within a day of their occurrence, stating:

"Diversity is Canada's strength. These vicious and senseless acts of intolerance have no place in our country and run absolutely contrary to Canadian values of pluralism and acceptance."
Trudeau also vowed that his government and police would work to protect the victims' rights, and urged Canadians to focus on unity in the face of global terrorism threats.
"Our focus must be on stopping the people responsible for the terror, and continuing to fight hate by embracing Canadian values," he said.

That is as it should be. A Prime Minister should speak up when the citizens of the country he runs are threatened in any way, and in the face of hate speech, condemn those acts.

Yet, it's been a week since a student in the Prime Minister's home town - at the Prime Minister's alma mater and faculty (he holds a Bachelor of Arts from McGill) - has called for violence against Zionists, and there is no statement whatsoever from him.

 One must ask, why not? Is this not enough of a story for him to comment on, when it's been covered and spread internationally? Is this not enough of a story because there's been nobody directly affected (or so he may believe) by the tweet? Or is this not enough of a story because the Jewish community is involved?

I despise rushing to judgment, but this Prime Minister hastens to comment on anti-Muslim rhetoric, and is currently drafting a motion that would make Islamophobia a crime. Motion M-103 condemns Islamophobia, but fails to mention other religious groups.

Considering the fact that Jews are the victims of religiously motivated hate crimes more often than any other religious group in Canada, this shows a definitive lack of inclusiveness in condemning ALL hate crimes.

Statistics Canada - Table Data Specified; Click To Enlarge

For a Prime Minister to be faced with this kind of story taking place over a week, with a continued atmosphere of fear and tensions on campus - spreading to other universities, no doubt - and say nothing?

It is not acceptable, not for a leader who is supposed to be the leader of all Canadians, not just one segment of the country.

McGill University likely wishes this issue would fade away. After all, the tweet was deleted, the Twitter account is gone, an "apology" was issued, and nobody has gotten punched (yet). 

Those of us incensed that this student is still an official representative, let alone still a student at McGill where his hate speech can be surreptitiously spread by him and his minions, will not let it go.

Those of us who want to see him expelled - and at the very least forced to resign his position - will not let it go.

Those of us who read of a student's traumatic experience at a SSMU meeting, where Sadikov spoke, and his supporters targeted dissenters, will not let it go.

Those of us who want our elected officials to speak up, to pressure not just the University but the leader of our country, to denounce, and act upon this egregious hate speech, will not let it go.

If you are a student at McGill, a recent graduate, an alumnus, or even a parent of one, it would be a good time to let Suzanne Fortier know how you feel. She is the Principal and Vice-Chancellor of McGill University, and her email address is suzanne.fortier@mcgill.ca.

The more emails she gets, the harder it will be for her to ignore it. 

I also urge everyone to write your MP to ask for a strong statement. The two statements above are excellent examples of elected officials recognizing the problem and doing something about it - even if it is just to speak up.

But we need more.

Find your MP on this site, and if you don't know who it is, you can search by your address.

All you need to do is send a simple email, referencing the story (B'nai Brith Canada published a story last Friday, in which the student doubled down on his hate speech), stating your outrage over his continued tenure as student and student rep, and asking for a formal statement - as well as perhaps asking the MP to introduce a motion to get a formal statement from Prime Minister Trudeau.

It starts with voices. Our voices.

Please join us.

McGill Student Rep Not Backing Down

In a newsletter I received from B'nai Brith, it has come to light that Igor Sadikov - about whom I wrote last night - has doubled down on his hatred, and has been contacted on social media by willing participants to his violence.

From the newsletter:

Igor Sadikov continues to spread anti-Jewish falsehoods, even after his tweet calling on his followers to “punch a Zionist” was exposed by B’nai Brith Canada Thursday. The report sparked a media firestorm.

Sadikov, clearly an unrepentant member of the Legislative Council and Board of Directors of the Students’ Society of McGill University (SSMU), issued a statement defending his tweet as “opposition to the adherents of a political philosophy,” but “not an attack against Jewish students,” citing his own “Jewish heritage”. According to Jewish students at McGill who have known Sadikov for years, he has never before publicly identified himself as Jewish or claimed any Jewish background.

Disturbingly, in the space below his “apology” on Facebook, Sadikov “liked” a comment from someone else, promising that “I can punch one for you if your position does not allow you to.” The “like” took place about seven hours after he made his so-called “apology.”

The screenshot:

Students have reported to B’nai Brith that, in a tense meeting of the SSMU Legislative Council last night, Sadikov refused to promptly resign, arguing that Jews do not constitute a legitimate ethnic group and that there is no historical connection between the Jewish People and the Levant. A motion to censure Sadikov for his comments failed by a large margin.

Later in the meeting, a member of McGill’s BDS Action Network demanded that Jasmine Segal, a Jewish member of the Legislative Council, be impeached for “supporting Zionism.” While Segal was not impeached, the President of SSMU and other Council members refused to speak in her defence.

Segal told B’nai Brith that, “A university’s purpose is to promote a free exchange of ideas and thought - it does not matter what you believe or support. The only exception is that there can be no support for violence as a tool to suppress another person's free speech. I had approached the President of SSMU in near tears, explaining my position, and was told that I would hear an apology and a public statement in the meeting. No apology was ever delivered. I am worried for students who are now scared to be a part of student government because of what happened to me today.”

Meanwhile, McGill itself condemned Sadikov’s remarks, saying in a statement, “We believe that they violate a number of our policies” and that “appropriate offices are taking action as required.”

“B’nai Brith Canada is disgusted by the response of SSMU, which allowed the escalation of attacks against Jewish students at McGill,” said Michael Mostyn, chief executive officer of the organization. “We have written to both SSMU and the administration, and our Quebec office filed a complaint to police (Thursday) about this matter.

“I cannot stress enough how appalled we are by what’s transpired in the past 48 hours. Rather than condemning Sadikov and distancing SSMU from his offensive position, it has chosen to remain silent about discrimination and incitement to violence toward its Jewish constituents. The McGill administration must move quickly to protect its own elected representatives.”

For more information contact:

Marty York

Chief Media Officer

marty.york@bnaibrith.ca

416-633-6224 x163

or

Daniel Koren

Media Coordinator

daniel.koren@bnaibrith.ca

416-633-6224 x172

As pointed out by a good friend, someone who is deeply knowledgeable about these issues, Sadikov should be charged under the Criminal Code, Section 319 as follows:

Public incitement of hatred

• 319 (1) Every one who, by communicating statements in any public place, incites hatred against any identifiable group where such incitement is likely to lead to a breach of the peace is guilty of
  • (a) an indictable offence and is liable to imprisonment for a term not exceeding two years; or
  • (b) an offence punishable on summary conviction.

• Marginal note:Wilful promotion of hatred

  (2) Every one who, by communicating statements, other than in private conversation, wilfully promotes hatred against any identifiable group is guilty of
  • (a) an indictable offence and is liable to imprisonment for a term not exceeding two years; or
  • (b) an offence punishable on summary conviction.

Meanwhile, I have forwarded last night's piece to various outlets, including B'nai Brith (the two gentlemen whose contact information is above) and have tweeted Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to disavow this student.

Of course, Trudeau has yet to disavow the Quebec Imam who prays daily for the annihilation of the Jews. So I'm expecting nothing.

But others ARE speaking up. And this revelation that Sadikov has continued his crusade, even after his "apology" is alarming, to the point where I believe criminal charges MUST be filed.

Please share your thoughts. And speak up.

We must not allow hatred to continue as a result of silence.

Montreal's McGill University Must Expel Anti-Semitic Student Rep

Photo:Paul Lowry, Flickr

Montreal is a city rich with educational institutions. One such venerable university, McGill University, is what many consider to be Montreal's "Ivy League University".

McGill has had its share, recently, of problems with the Jewish community. In February of 2016, almost 60% of those who voted supported the adoption of the BDS movement, a movement that encourages consumers to Boycott, Divest, and Sanction companies profiting from Israeli manufacturing.

The movement has been in existence since 2005, and has faced pushback from the International community - Jewish and non-Jewish organizations alike.

Though they may claim their mission is to help the Palestinian people allegedly "oppressed" by Israel, the very nature of the movement is not to help others, but to punish Israel. This piece very deftly explains why the BDS movement is one of hate, and is not pro-Palestinian.

The McGill vote represented only 3% of the 30,000 students at the University, and when presented for ratification just a few days later, it was struck down 57%-43% (with 6% abstaining).

That left a stain on McGill's reputation, but with the University's denouncement of the movement in the days that followed, things seemed to right themselves again over the past 12 months.

Until now.

On Thursday, February 9, 2017, it came to light that a McGill student representative, in the faculty of arts, had tweeted, urging his followers to "punch a Zionist today." Igor Sadikov tweeted it Monday, but it only became known on Thursday.

The tweet - now deleted - looked like this:

The word spread swiftly, through social media, and there were immediate calls denouncing it - and the student.

B'nai Brith, and CIJA - the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs - called for the student to resign, stating that not only was the tweet anti-Semitic, but called for violence as well.

Sadikov released a statement justifying his tweet - but how such a thing can be justified is beyond me. His statement reads:

Statement regarding the tweet I recently published: pic.twitter.com/kjQb0NprZU

— igor (@vokidas) February 9, 2017

Unacceptable.

See, he - and others who support his point of view - may see Zionists as separate from Jews, but that is a fallacy. Yes, there are non-Jewish Zionists, and there are Jews who are not Zionists. The definition of a Zionist is - from the Jewish Virtual Library:

Its general definition means the national movement for the return of the Jewish people to their homeland and the resumption of Jewish sovereignty in the Land of Israel. 

It's truly difficult to justify "punch a Zionist" as anything but anti-Semitic, especially given his expanded explanation. It is thinly veiled anti-Semitism.

Those of us who support Israel, and stand up for her right to exist, also recognize that there has never been a Palestinian State, and rather than go into the why's and wherefores of the conflict that spawned the BDS movement, I will refer you to this short video:



While I have been very outspoken about my love for Israel, and my support of the policies that govern the land in the name of security and safety, that's not what I'm here to do at this time.

This piece addresses the danger, and the infuriating sentiment expressed by Sadikov - and supported by those with the same thoughts.

First of all, he is a student representative - elected to that role by fellow students. Imagine how many of them are Jewish, and had no idea he harbored this kind of hatred.

A report on the incident, in The Algemeiner, states this:

According to Canadian human rights organization B’nai Brith Canada, Sadikov is a prominent supporter of the BDS movement at McGill. He is also the former news editor of The McGill Daily, which, as The Algemeiner reported, openly admitted to censoring pro-Israel content on the grounds that Zionism is a product of “settler colonial ideology.”

Secondly, he is advocating for violence (and his weak justification "I do not condone nor justify violence on the basis of membership in any identity group" belies that). This puts Jewish students in danger, but it goes further.

If this student is allowed to stay at the University, given his initial tweet and suggested action against Jews, it sends a very strong message to ALL who discriminate based on identity in any group.

This puts all students at risk: visible minorities, disabled, LGBTQ, students who speak different languages - or even just French or just English - or even those who are perceived as different from the attacker. Bullies need no reason to target others; intolerant hate-filled individuals go beyond that: their reasons are differences of others, based on identity.

The precedent it sets, should he be allowed to stay, is treacherous for all students not only at McGill University, but anywhere, any level institution, any city, any province, and yes, any country where hate speech is allowed to flourish unpunished.

Note: there is a difference between free speech and hate speech. This is a textbook example of hate speech, which is never to be allowed, and can be prosecuted.

McGill University is an internationally renowned institution. Its international-student body is extensive (roughly one-third of enrolment is international, according to the registration statistics as of Fall 2016):

What would happen, should potential students in the international community were to find out that a known anti-Semite, elected to be a student rep, and remaining untouched by the University itself, is encouraging the rest of the student body to punch Zionists? (And I don't care if the tweet has been deleted, it's out there and has been publicized - the damage is done)

What would happen, should parents/family members in the international community, with students already at McGill University, were to hear that a known hater was allowed to stay, not only harboring hateful thoughts toward those with whom he disagrees, but encouraging violence - and most likely continuing those thoughts among friends and like-minded classmates?

McGill University would lose a great deal of its income, should that happen. Who knows? It may already be happening, with this incident being reported throughout Canada, the USA, Israel, and other countries.

Sadikov has angered an untold number of people, Jews and non-Jews alike. If anyone is not enraged by his tweet, and his attitude, I would urge them to ask themselves why (that is, if they don't already know it is because they agree with him).

History is a perfect, effective guideline for us to use to inform our actions. It may not have been during Sadikov's lifetime - it wasn't during mine - but it was not too long ago that Jews in Eastern Europe were attacked in this very same manner.

Note: I do not invoke comparisons to Nazi Germany casually. I recognize the profound depths of horror that period in history represents, but it's an apt comparison to draw here. Not only because of 1930s Nazism, but because there are anti-Semites who are continuing to perpetuate their hatred even today.

There was no Internet then, but there was media, and there were posters, songs, jingles, and directives from Nazi Germany to perpetrate violence upon Jews. 

Nazi Germany, led by Hitler, and the implementation of  "The Final Solution" to exterminate the Jewish people, was a place and time of hatred, based on identity. There are many, many stories of Jews being accosted in the streets, Jewish men being subjected to scissors cutting off their beards and hair, for purposes of humiliation as well as stripping them of their identity. There are many stories of Jews being tormented en masse, unable to fight back for fear of being killed - because those humiliating them were armed, and sanctioned by Hitler's government.

Jews were subjected to hatred borne by those who needed very little in the way of a reason in order to harm, or kill them. 

And now, Jewish students - Zionists or not - are being subjected to the very real possibility of violence against them, encouraged by a member of the student body who has been elected to represent the students in the faculty of arts.

In fact, the law student who brought the tweet to the public eye (Simon Paransky) stated, in an interview:

“It’s appalling that a student representative is calling for violence against a certain group of people,” Paransky said. “And it is not an isolated incident. It is happening in a context of increased hostility to students on campus, mostly students of Jewish faith but also students of non-Jewish faith who are allies of Jewish students.”

How is the person who unleashed this upon the student community at McGill University being allowed to stay on at the school?

There are many of us, mobilizing to protest this student's existence at McGill. We are protesting his continued status as student rep, and as student at all. We are calling upon McGill University to expel him, or - as the most recent reports say - force his resignation. 

If he is allowed to stay, I hope the community - local, and international - will govern themselves accordingly. Funding should be stopped. Enrolment should be stopped, and perhaps transfers out of McGill become the norm.

Sadly, it is only the threat of financial loss - and/or negative publicity - that will force the hand of the University.

This is not going away. Nor should it. We should ALL be speaking up, we should ALL be railing against the tolerance of violent rhetoric, anti-Semitism, and hatred condoned by an internationally renowned institution of higher education.

Because today it is anti-Semitism - tomorrow it could be any of a number of other groups targeted for violence and hatred.

And the way I see it, if McGill does nothing about this, they are condoning - perhaps even endorsing - the call for violence, and should be consequenced accordingly.

One last note: where is Canada's Prime Minister, Justin Trudeau? This story has been circulating for almost 24 hours, and he has always been quick to condemn violence against Muslims, but seemingly silent when Jews have been involved.

As the leader of our country, as a Montrealer himself, he should be speaking up, condemning the student, and adding to the pressure upon McGill to expel Sadikov permanently.

Along with our call to protest McGill's harboring of an anti-Semitic student rep, we call upon the Prime Minister to speak up against this student and join us in our urging McGill University to act.

Folks, not everyone is an activist. Some people just prefer to stay out of it, and disengage while harboring their own private thoughts. 

But even if you disavow this student and what he stands for, in your thoughts, it is not enough. If we all remain silent, what can change? Silence can be deadly.

I will end with the wise words of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr:

In the End, we will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends.

If you are as incensed as so many of us are, please speak up. Share this article. Talk about it with your family, friends, kids, parents. Let McGill University know that you do not support their permitting Igor Sadikov to remain on campus, much less a student representative.

You are speaking up for this situation, but you are also investing in the future of humanity - one person at a time.

Will you join us?