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The Canadian group Independent Jewish Voices today is releasing a report titled “Unveiling the Chilly Climate – The Suppression of Speech on Palestine In Canada.” Researchers Sheryl Nestel and Rowan Gaudet spent the last year gathering information and testimonials about the repression faced by academics, students and Palestine solidarity activists across Canada.
This is the first study to use ethnographic methodology and qualitative analysis to describe both the overarching effects of this repression as well as the deeply personal impact it has on activists, artists, students and professors. While many people active in the Palestine solidarity movement are familiar with the tactics described in the report, it is shocking to read the dozens of testimonials collected and understand the extent and scope of the suppression efforts.
I spoke to Sheryl and Rowan last week about the report and what can be done to counter these attacks.
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Articles and Links mentioned in the show
- Report: Unveiling the Chilly Climate – The Suppression of Speech on Palestine in Canada, Sheryl Nestel and Rowan Gaudet at IJV
- The ADL declares war on Palestine solidarity groups, Michael Arria
- Palestinian students facing increased harassment on Israeli campuses, Jessica Buxbaum
- UVM president rejects antisemitism charges, but university remains target of pro-Israel groups, Michael Arria
- The IHRA and The JDA, Michael Arria in The Shift newsletter
- Professors fight to defend Palestine and protect academic freedom, David Spero
- The manufactured campus antisemitism hysteria intensifies, David Samel
- Trump’s executive order on antisemitism is only meant to suppress Palestine solidarity on campus, California Scholars for Academic Freedom
- Pro-Palestine campus groups are being targeted via federal complaints thanks to the Trump administration, Michael Arria
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Re: Irwin Cotler, Canadian Zionist:
https://torontosun.com/opinion/columnists/goldstein-another-fight-for-free-speech-at-university-of-toronto
Excerpt: “Irwin Cotler, Canada’s Special Envoy on Combatting Antisemitism, delivered a virtual speech on January 26 at an event hosted by the University of Toronto’s Temerty Faculty of Medicine, on the eve of Holocaust Remembrance Day.
“Cotler’s speech reinforced hatred against the indigenous Semitic Palestinian people in a way that is consistent with a broader pattern, used by apologists for Israeli apartheid, of silencing & erasing Palestinian voices.
“Cotler accused critics of Israel of promoting hatred of Jews since Israel is the world’s only Jewish state.”
“Cotler’s statement is as absurd as stating that criticism of the white supremacist regime of former South Africa promotes hatred of all white people or that criticizing the invasion of Ukraine by Russia, the world’s only Russian state, promotes hatred of all Russian people.
By calling Israel ‘the world’s only Jewish state’, Cotler also echoes apartheid Israel’s beliefs which ignore the existence of 20% of Israel’s citizens who are Christian and Muslim Palestinians.
“Cotler went on to defend & justify Israel’s racism against indigenous Semitic Palestinians by stating that calling Israel an ‘apartheid state’ is another example of modern-day antisemitism.
“By doing so, Cotler brushed aside the indisputable findings of many renowned human rights organizations – including Israel’s B’Tselem’s report of January 2021, New York-based Human Rights Watch’s report of April 2021 and London-based Amnesty International’s report of February 2022 – that Israel has for 73 years been committing the crimes against humanity of apartheid, persecution & domination over 7 million indigenous Semitic Palestinians under its control & of the six million Semitic Palestinian refugees in neighboring countries who have not been allowed to return to their homeland since 1948.” (cont’d)
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“Alarmingly, Cotler implicitly slandered many Palestinian & international human rights groups including reputable mainstream ones such as Amnesty International & Human Rights Watch – who dedicate their time & energy exposing human rights violations anywhere in the world and whose recent reports condemn apartheid Israel & call for sanctions – by accusing them of hating Jews.
“Understandably, Israel tries to divert attention from its actions by claiming it represents World Jewry & accusing its critics of hating Jews. Cotler’s echoing of Israel’s claim is a serious mistake since it implies that all Jews are responsible for the crimes against humanity being committed by the apartheid Israeli regime.
“Even worse, Cotler is also promoting hatred against all those Jews who believe Israel is an apartheid state. An April 2021 poll by B’Tselem, a leading Israeli human rights organization, found that 25% of Israeli Jews believe Israel is an apartheid state. A July 2021 poll commissioned by the Jewish Electorate Institute shows 25% of US Jews & 38% of US Jews under the age of 40 agreed that ‘Israel is an apartheid state.’
“Ironically, instead of combatting hatred of Jews, Cotler is targeting 25% of Israeli & American Jews, & Canadian Jewish groups (including Independent Jewish Voices & Palestinian & Jewish Unity) who assert Israel is an apartheid state.
“Desperately, Cotler attempted in his U of T speech to defend a racist regime (that enshrines Jewish supremacy between the Jordan River & the Mediterranean Sea over the indigenous Semitic Muslim & Christian Palestinians who have inhabited the area for thousands of years) by resorting to slandering reputable human rights organizations & Jewish critics of Israel & by promoting anti-Palestinian racism.
“By having a special envoy who openly defends an apartheid regime that has been committing for 73 years crimes against humanity over the indigenous Palestinian people, tarnishes Canada’s image since it implies that Canada will tolerate racism against any racial or religious group & that it will silence those who expose racism in Palestine & Canada, including acclaimed human rights groups & Jews.”