Established in 1875, B'nai Brith Canada is the Canadian Jewry's foremost human rights and community service organization. B'nai Brith is also the community's only independently-funded national organization.
The purpose of this briefing paper is to provide candidates in the current Ontario Election campaign with a basic understanding of the issues that are of particular importance to the province's Jewish community. It has also been made available to community members seeking information on where candidates stand on key issues.
In the 2001 budget, the Ontario government introduced its Equity in Education Tax Credit (EETC). This tax credit, when fully implemented, will provide parents of children attending private school with a reimbursement of 50% of the tuition they pay up to a maximum of $3,500.00 per child per calendar year.
The implementation of the EETC is set to occur in increments of 10% over a period of five years. According to this schedule, the amount parents will be permitted to claim for the calendar year 2003 will be 20%, up to a maximum of $1,500.
The political rhetoric that has enveloped the EETC in the lead-up to this election has obscured some very basic issues about the issue of tax relief for parents who choose a religious-based education for their children over access to the publicly funded school system. It is important for candidates to understand that the decision to provide some form of tax relief was not taken in a vacuum. It is also crucial to understand that this relief is beneficial to parents in many different religious minorities.
Fair funding for Jewish schools in Ontario - as well as schools of other religious groups - has been a fundamental goal of B'nai Brith Canada for years. The EETC was introduced after a long and sometimes acrimonious campaign by a coalition of religious groups that included litigation in Canadian Courts. It culminated with a complaint filed by a Jewish parent with the United Nations Human Rights Committee pursuant to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, an instrument which Canada singed after receiving the assent of each province. The Committee found, after hearing evidence from all parties, that Ontario's unwillingness to provide financial support to parochial schools contravened the terms of that treaty.
Much of the opposition to public funding for private religious schools is predicated on the belief that the decision of parents to send their children to such institutions is merely a matter of choice, i.e. that public schools are as accessible to children of faith as are parochial schools. Apart from the challenge implicit in that argument to the right of parents to have that choice, the fact remains that the basic underlying assumption is untrue. Ontario's public schools are not, as some would argue, non-denominational, but rather reflect the predominantly Christian character of our society. For example, the entire school year is organized around the Christian calendar.
This is not meant to be construed as criticism of the current system. There is, in general, a positive benefit to society of religious instruction in schools, so long as parents are given a choice as to how and when such instruction will take place.
It is imperative, therefore, for candidates to understand that for most Jewish parents who send their children to Jewish schools, as for the devout of other religions, there is no real choice. They are compelled by their religious convictions to do so. It is inequitable to perpetuate a system that forces these parents to choose between their religious beliefs and a public education system that truly does not - and arguably cannot - adequately accommodate those beliefs and value systems.
Thus far, the only party committed to maintaining the EETC is the PC Party. The other parties, with some notable exceptions, voted overwhelmingly against its enactment and have pledged in varying degrees to revoke the tax credit, without offering an alternate plan to ensure that the rights of Ontario's religious communities with respect to education are respected.
B'nai Brith Canada strongly supports the continued implementation of the EETC. Those candidates that do not support the EETC have an important duty to outline alternate measures to ensure that the spirit and substance of the EETC are respected, with a financial arrangement that will ensure fair treatment of families opting for religious-based schools in Ontario.
The EETC is not a perfect solution. B'nai Brith Canada recognizes that there is room for significant improvement in the program, such as extending the eligibility criteria to allow individuals other than parents to apply for and receive the credit if they pay these children's tuition. We are committed to continuing to work with the government to find solutions to these issues.
Hate activity continues to escalate in Ontario. In 2002, the League for Human Rights of B'nai Brith Canada recorded a total of 459 antisemitic incidents across Canada, a startling 60.48% increase in reported incidents over the year before. In fact, in the twenty year history of the Audit, 459 is the highest number ever reported to the League. In the past five years alone, the number of incidents has more than doubled.
Of the 459 incidents recorded across Canada in the 2002 annual Audit of Antisemitic Incidents, 329 or 71.6% took place in Ontario. 217 out of the 329 Ontario incidents took place in the Greater Toronto Area, representing an 87% increase over the previous year's figures for the same area. Ottawa reported a 79% increase, while regional Ontario (the areas outside of Toronto and Ottawa) witnessed a 50% increase over the previous year's figures.
A marked increase in violent acts is also a trend of considerable concern. In 2002, 282 (61.44%) of the total incidents were classified as harassment, 148 (32.24%) as vandalism and 29 (6.32%) as violence. This compares to 203 cases of harassment (71%) and 83 cases of vandalism (29%) in 2001. Prior to the 2002 Audit, violence was included in the harassment category, since at the time it was not considered a sufficiently common phenomenon to warrant a separate category. As physical assault became more common following 9/11, the League added a third category of violence in order to be able to track the increasing use of violence in the incidents reported during 2002. There is every indication that the total incidents for 2003 will continue to reflect this trend.
Clearly the Jewish community continues to be vulnerable. The Toronto police force reported a small overall decrease in hate crimes in 2002 compared to the previous year when there was a significant post-9/11 spike. However, hate crimes involving the Jewish community have remained at the same elevated or even increased levels.
Organized hate groups appear to be going underground or moving to more outlying regional locations. However, organized events such as skinhead concerts have taken place in recent months and have resulted in the laying of criminal charges. Hate on the internet continues to be a favored method of operation by these groups.
Antisemitic comments by leaders such as David Ahenakew have clearly encouraged others to act in a racially biased manner and have contributed to the sense of vulnerability of Jewish community members. Tensions in the Middle East, courts cases such as the criminal trial of Christian McBride, accused of murdering a member of the orthodox Jewish community in Toronto, and the ongoing refugee proceedings concerning Zundel, will likely contribute to an increased level of hate activity in Ontario.
We urge the Attorney General of Ontario to become more aggressive in the pressing of charges pursuant to s.319 of the Criminal Code against those persons who willfully promote hatred against identifiable groups on the basis of race, religion and sexual orientation, and to ensure that the increased sentencing provisions of s. 718 of the Code are applied.
We also urge the Ontario government to reinstate anti-discrimination and anti-violence education into Ontario schools and to fund government departments and community based organizations that can assist schools, public sector agencies and community groups to develop curriculum, recognize the warning signs, and take action against hate in their local schools and communities across Ontario. B'nai Brith's Anti-Hate Hotline (1-800-892-BNAI) can offer assistance in this important area, as well as such resources as our pamphlet Is Your Child a Target.
More public funding should be directed to anti-racism initiatives such as our Taking Action Against Hate training program, which has been successfully offered to thousands of educators, students, law enforcement professionals, public and private sector workers and vulnerable minority groups across the country. Securing this type of program for Ontario schools and communities would put this province in the lead in terms of anti-racism education and encourage a spirit of human rights activism in many sectors of our multicultural society.
Recent warnings to Canadian Jews to walk home together in groups from synagogue, as well as the increased security at every Jewish synagogue, school and community organization in the country, are indications that threats to the Jewish community cannot be ignored by any level of government in any region.
Since 9/11, the focus of the threat has moved from fringe right wing groups and lone agitators to entities linked to international terrorism. Following the city wide alert issued to the Jewish community by the Ottawa Chief of Police and Mayor for the entire month of June 2002, and terror threats reported to a Jewish neighbourhood in Montreal linked to the Reesam affair, there is evidently grave cause for concern. Phenomena such as the firebombing of synagogues and violence against visible Jews have reached Canadian shores. The community is feeling besieged, all the more so because there is an absence of outrage from the public in general, and our political parties in particular.
It is necessary for candidates to respond to the fact that the Jewish community - alone out of every other religious and ethnic minority in the country - requires this high level of security. Such an arrangement would be unprecedented at any church, mosque or Hindu or Sikh temple, or at the religious schools of these communities. Meanwhile, the Jewish community carries the entire burden of this extra security in the absence of any creative response by government. The new Ontario government, whatever its composition, must assume responsibility for dealing with this unpararelled security threat to a Canadian minority.
The issue of providing affordable housing for families, seniors, individuals and people with disabilities continues to be ongoing and pressing.
As part of B'nai Brith Canada's time honoured commitment to serve the needs of the community, an affordable housing program was established in 1979 with the assistance of all three levels of government. Our three apartments in Toronto provide an excellent quality of living to our residents, whether individuals, families, seniors or individuals with disabilities.
At the present time the waiting list for affordable housing is well in excess of 65,000 families. Over 300,000 households, which represent 22% of Ontario tenants, spend more than half of their income on rent. Rents are rising, with the average rent increase at twice the rate of inflation. The Ontario Non-Profit Housing Association (ONPHA) reports that for every rental apartment built over the past 10 years, Ontario has lost 1 ½ units to condominium conversion or demolition. Census Canada reports that from 1996 to 2001, 40,780 Ontario rental units disappeared, many of them duplexes, basement apartments and condo rentals.
The provincial government in the past has stated that "they are not in the construction business", yet without the assistance from all levels of government this void will never be filled. The Ontario government's own Housing Supply Working Group reported that even with the recommendations to reduce government taxes, as well as charges and regulations to developers, this will not generate rental residences that would be affordable to those in need.
In 2001, the Federal Government promised $360 million to the Province to be invested in providing affordable housing. In order for developers and non-profits to build affordable housing, the Province must match these funds. The Province of Quebec does match funds and, in fact, B'nai Brith Canada will shortly be breaking ground for its first B'nai Brith House in Montreal.
The previous program, in which non-profit organizations were financially assisted and thus able to build affordable housing, proved to be most successful for those individuals requiring assistance. The non-profit organizations that built during this time, provided extra programming and assistance to their tenants, and thus the families and individuals living in these residences experience a high quality of life. Non-profit organizations do not have to maximize rents for their investors and will guarantee that the rents are always affordable for their residents.
Only through government assistance will affordable housing for all be feasible. What is required is a joint effort between all levels of government, in partnership with non-profit organizations such as B'nai Brith Canada.
The League for Human Rights of B'nai Brith Canada has been advocating on behalf of the rights of persons with disabilities for decades, even before the inclusion of 'handicap' as a protected ground under the Ontario Human Rights Code in 1982.
In more recent years, the League, through its Ontarians with Disabilities Act sub-committee, has made representation to various government Ministers and members of provincial parliament, urging them to draft and pass a strong and effective Ontarians with Disabilities Act that would ultimately create a barrier-free Ontario to not only allow for full participation in every aspect of life for the 1.9 million Ontarians currently with disabilities, but also to address the requirements of an aging population and those people requiring easier mobility access to buildings, streets and facilities.
In 1995, the PC's promised to pass a strong and effective Ontarians with Disabilities Act in their first term. After a delay of 6 years, in 2001 they finally presented one of the shortest and most ineffective pieces of legislation of this era, that contained no enforcement mechanisms, no regulations, no mandatory requirements, and that applied only to certain areas of the public sector, and not at all to the private sector. Municipal and other public sector organizations were required to file accessibility plans, but were not obligated to implement them, nor to remove or prevent barriers. As yet, there are no current election promises on the part of the PC's to strengthen this disappointing piece of legislation.
Both the Liberals and New Democrats proposed amendments to strengthen the Act, but were voted down by the Tories. In this current election, both parties promise to strengthen the Act within one year. It would be important to know how they plan to strengthen it.
Access to long-term care facilities has been severely compromised because of government cut-backs and convoluted application procedures. The de-institutionalization of chronic and long-term care patients, in the name of 'normalization' and community integration, has ultimately resulted in many being transferred back into acute care facilities because of a shortage of available communal support services and funding. Tragically, in some cases this has resulted in patients with progressive illnesses, not opting for life-sustaining measures, for fear of financially burdening their families.
Community Care Access Centres and Outreach Program are in the unenviable position of having to determine, given the limited size of the pie, whether to support a small number of 'clients' with the necessary community health services and supplies, or a large number of clients with barely minimal service. Most have opted for the latter.
Furthermore, in many cases medical supplies and much of the equipment which used to be provided free of charge, are now the financial responsibility of the patient and his/her family.
The decimation of the health system calls into question not only the quality of life of a person with an illness, but the quantity of that life as well. It is incumbent on candidates to enunciate a strong commitment to enhancing the heath care system in terms of its chronic and long-term care patients.
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