By Jesse Kline
In 2018, then-prime minister Justin Trudeau issued an apology for Canada's role in turning away the MS St. Louis in 1939, sending over 900 Jews to their deaths, "despite the desperate plea of the Canadian Jewish community, despite the repeated calls by the government’s two Jewish caucus members."
Yet it was under his watch that Canada experienced an alarming rise in antisemitism following the October 7 massacre; and it was he who failed to take meaningful action, despite the desperate pleas of the Jewish community and Jewish members of his own caucus, leading Canada to earn the dubious distinction this week of being the "champion of antisemitism."
That was how Israel's Ministry of Diaspora Affairs and Combating Antisemitism reportedly characterized Canada in a press release accompanying its 123-page report on global antisemitism.
The paper relied on "research synthesized quantitative data, professional reports from specialized organizations, expert interviews and systematic open-source investigation" to create a "comprehensive picture of the state of antisemitism in the world in 2024."
The numbers are stark: between Oct. 7, 2023, and the end of 2024, antisemitic incidents rose 200 per cent in the United States, 320 per cent in Australia and 670 per cent in Canada compared to the same period a year earlier.
In the year following the October 7 massacre, 1,500 anti-Israel demonstrations were held in Toronto, many in Jewish neighbourhoods and in front of Jewish community institutions, while Vancouver witnessed 344 protests.
In Canada and elsewhere, Jews are increasingly feeling unsafe. Polling from last year found that 82 per cent of Jewish-Canadians feel less secure than before October 7. In Europe, too, 78 per cent of Jewish community leaders say their cities have become less safe places for Jews to live.
Meanwhile, survey research from the Anti-Defamation League shows that nearly half the world (46 per cent) holds antisemitic views. In Canada, the percentage of the population who believe "Jews are responsible for most of the world's wars" rose to 16 per cent in 2024, from seven per cent a decade earlier. More than half of Canadians (53 per cent) now believe "Jews are more loyal to Israel than to their country of residence," up from 32 per cent in 2014.
This is part of an alarming trend of what the Diaspora Ministry characterizes as a new form of antisemitism — one that is "increasingly dangerous, normalized and systemic."
The report notes that public opinion in the West has been shaped by an alliance of Islamist and radical left-wing governments and organizations, "with the shared goal of undermining the legitimacy of the State of Israel as a Jewish nation-state." And their actions are increasingly "directed at Jewish communities around the world."
This has allowed antisemitism to undergo a "process of normalization, marked by increased societal tolerance." Attempts to "shroud antisemitic rhetoric and actions within a context of acceptable speech," "directing statements and actions at 'Zionists' rather than Jews," has lead to a "growing tolerance for these hateful statements and opinions within polite society."
As the report makes clear, these issues are global in nature. But for such a small country, Canada witnessed a disproportionate number of antisemitic incidents.
Of the ministry's list of the top 10 "representative events" of 2024, Canada was home to three of them: three separate shootings at a Jewish elementary school in Toronto, two firebombings of a synagogue in Montreal and the anti-Israel encampments that took root on university campuses throughout the country.
"Antisemitism in Canada during 2024 escalated dramatically compared to previous years, affecting multiple dimensions of Jewish community life," reads the report. "Although Jews constitute about 1.4 per cent of Canada's total population, they are the target of 70 per cent of religious hate crimes in the country."
Tellingly, it cited research that found an "organized network of 111 non-governmental organizations operating against Israel in Canada, of which 38 are registered as businesses or associations, and 29 receive government funding." These groups are "leading a systematic campaign against pro-Israel Jewish organizations," which is "fuelling antisemitic agitation."
A global leader in the spread of anti-Israel propaganda was the Vancouver-based group Samidoun. Although Ottawa listed it as a terrorist entity in October, that took place a full year after it was outlawed in Germany, underscoring the difference in how seriously various western governments have taken this issue.
The report separates government responses to the rise in antisemitism into three categories. At one end are countries like the United States and Germany, which "prioritize the security of the local Jewish population, maintain proper relations with Israel (and) are not affected by double standards."
At the other end of the spectrum are places like South Africa and Ireland, which criticize Israel "in an exceptional and selective manner, to the extent that local Jewish communities feel isolated, excluded and less secure."
Canada is in the mushy middle, characterized by state action "to combat antisemitism alongside feelings among community leaders that their governments are not doing enough to ensure communities a sense of security and belonging."
In countries that fall into this category, the report notes, "a significant rise in the number of antisemitic incidents has been observed, despite the authorities' efforts."
Our government increased funding for security at Jewish institutions, appointed a special advisor on antisemitism and a parliamentary committee issued a report with numerous recommendations on combating Jew-hate. But those initiatives have been criticized for being underfunded and lacking any teeth.
Meanwhile, the federal Liberals have singled out Israel at the United Nations, supported the adoption of a definition of "anti-Palestinian racism" that seems purposely designed to limit pro-Israel speech and failed to condemn antisemitic comments made by UN special rapporteur Francesca Albanese. The report also criticizes Foreign Minister Mélanie Joly for refusing to denounce incidents of antisemitic hate.
Given all the demands on our new government, its unlikely to make antisemitism a top priority unless — God forbid — something really bad happens. But the fact that a foreign government seems more concerned about the safety and security of the Canadian Jewish community than our own might, with a smidgen of luck, be enough to shame the Carney government into acknowledging that something needs to change.
