
Rochelle Wilner President	Frank Dimant Chief Executive Officer	Prof. Stephen Scheinberg National Chair	Ruth Klein National Director of Advocacy

1997 Audit of Antisemitic Incidents

THE STRUGGLE AGAINST ANTISEMITISM AND HATE

PROTECTION, PREVENTION, AND PARTNERSHIPS

In addition to responding on a case-by-case basis to reported incidents, it is by using the tools of education and research (prevention), legal/legislative interventions (protection), community action and coalition building (partnerships) that the League strives to fulfill its goals of combatting antisemitism, racism, and bigotry, and to promote and achieve human rights for all Canadians.

EDUCATION, TRAINING AND RESEARCH

Education is one of the major tools with which to counteract hate in high schools, colleges and universities. Through its Education and Training Centre, the League provides educational materials for students and teachers, conducts countless professional development workshops in school boards and on campuses, and provides training programs in the public and private sectors, including health care facilities, government agencies and businesses. In 1997 the Centre conducted anti-racist education workshops, courses on human rights and workplace harassment, programs on and for the criminal justice system (police, crown attorneys, judiciary), and public lectures and symposia on Holocaust education.

Participants in the League’s "Holocaust & Hope" Educators’ Study Tour to Germany, Poland and Israel assist in anti-racism education in British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Ontario, New Brunswick, indeed right across the country, including many communities targeted by hate group recruitment. In 1997 the first "Holocaust and Hope" Student Study Tour to Israel took 19 teenagers from diverse racial and ethnic backgrounds to study Holocaust education in the context of anti-racist issues in Canada. The students returned to their communities across the country better able to handle incidents of Holocaust denial and racist behaviour. The student program was so successful, it will be repeated in 1998.

Two public education campaigns in 1997 promoted awareness of antisemitism, racism and hate and the importance of reporting incidents. The League continued to promote our anti-hate hotline {1-800-892-BNAI (2624)} across the country through all our publications; and in July the League launched a major public education campaign in the subway system of Metro Toronto, spearheaded by our National Communications Chair, Jerry Rose. Massive billboard ads appeared in 10 subway stations for 12 weeks. The space was donated as a public service by the company who is responsible for subway advertisement.

Many calls were received in the national office commending the League for raising awareness of racism and hate. In the coming year the ad will also appear in bus shelters, and it is being adapted for magazines and newspapers.

As part of the League’s ongoing effort to raise public awareness of human rights, the annual Media Human Rights Awards program honours deserving members of the media. In 1997, the 22nd Media Human Rights Awards dinner was held in Winnipeg, where awards were presented to members of the Canadian media who had exposed human right abuses, promoted positive race relations, and raised awareness of human rights in Canada. Guest speaker, Hon. Alan Rock, then Minister of Justice, highlighted Canada’s commitment to escalate actions against Nazi war criminals, as well as against hate and bias crime in Canada.

For the last few years, the League has held a Leadership Development Symposium in human rights and race relations, in conjunction with the annual Media Human Rights Awards, to commemorate the International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination. The 1997 symposium in Winnipeg, entitled "Hate and Racism in the Home, School and Community - Let’s Take Action" built on the 1996 symposium, "Combatting Racism and Hate in Canada Today - Protection, Prevention and Partnerships", and brought together local educators, police and community activists, along with the national leadership of the League, to develop practical strategies to work together to maintain safe and secure communities.

LEGAL/LEGISLATIVE INITIATIVES

In 1997 there were several legal/legislative initiatives that advanced the struggle against antisemitism and hate in Canada. In addition to the various charges under Section 319(2) of the Criminal Code, as described above, several high profile cases and interventions are noteworthy.

In February 1997, the League commended the Ontario Court of Appeal’s tough stand on racist violence in its decision to uphold a lower court sentence against white supremacist leader George Burdi. The court strongly noted and condemned the racist nature of his assault on an anti-racist activist in Ottawa in 1993. As Rochelle Wilner, National Chair of the League for Human Rights stated:

The court’s condemnation of racism arising out of Burdi’s cowardly and brutal attack on a young woman sends a powerful message that racist violence will not be tolerated in Ontario and that lower court’s decisions to enhance the sentences of individuals who commit racially motivated crimes will be upheld.

A Human Rights Tribunal convened on October 14 to hear a complaint against Ernst Zundel’s Internet website, The Zundelsite. Originally made by the City of Toronto Mayor’s Committee on Race Relations, chaired by Mayor Barbara Hall, and by private citizen Sabina Citron, the complaint charges Zundel under Section 13(1) of the Human Rights Code which prevents the use of a telephonic device for the exposure of an identifiable group to hatred or contempt. The League, represented by National Legal Counsel, Marvin Kurz, was granted intervenor status following the preliminary hearings in the Spring of 1997, and continues to provide and cross-examine witnesses and make submissions to the Tribunal. Other intervenors include Canadian Friends of Simon Wiesenthal, and the Canadian Jewish Congress, Ontario Region.

Ernst Zundel is a German born, Toronto-based publisher. He is an active and vicious antisemite, and is one of the world’s largest publishers of antisemitic, neo-Nazi and Nazi propaganda. He is a self-described lover of Hitler, and an adherent of Nazi ideology. Most but not all of his published material dissembles his true sympathies under the euphemistic label of "Historical Revisionism". This case is the first to apply existing Canadian legislation to the Internet and is likely to result in recommendations for new legislation dealing exclusively with the Internet. This case also advances the movement toward having Holocaust denial defined as hate propaganda once and for all. Prof. Gary Prideaux, a linguist from the University of Alberta, showed the linguistic techniques utilized in Zundel’s Holocaust denial and related materials, which lead to direct and blatant antisemitism; Mayor Barbara Hall testified to the nature of the complaint, arguing that the totality of the Zundelsite spins a web of antisemitism that will insidiously influence the average reader. Telecommunications expert, Ian Angus explained the telephonic nature of the Internet and Irene Zundel, the estranged wife of Ernst Zundel, testified to the fact that Zundel is indeed in control of the contents of the Zundelsite and that webmistress Ingrid Rimland was actually in his employ and therefore not the owner of the site as Zundel originally claimed. The case will continue well into 1998, and regardless of the outcome will be significant in terms of legislation regulating the Internet.

B’nai Brith Canada hosted the International Symposium on Hate on the Internet, September 7-9, 1997 in Toronto, Canada. One hundred invited participants, including government and police officials and representatives of the fields of law, human rights, computer technology, academia, education, and community action, engaged in an in-depth exploration of hate on the Internet for the purpose of drafting recommendations designed to counter this growing phenomenon. The participants gathered from across Canada and from the United States, England, Germany, Israel and Australia for this unprecedented, three-day event.

The tremendous increase in hate propaganda on the Internet since it was first highlighted in the 1995 Audit and the lack of a systemic, structural and inter-jurisdictional approach to hate speech on the Internet were the driving forces behind the organization of the symposium. B’nai Brith was commended for having all aspects of the issue represented - from the Civil Liberties and Electronic Frontier approach, to the innovative Nizkor approach, all the way to the strict regulatory approach of the German government. The recommendations were divided into four subgroups: legal/legislative regulatory measures, voluntary non-regulatory measures, the role of the police, and educational proactive initiatives. The Executive Summary and Recommendations have been presented to the Minister of Justice, the Solicitor General and the Secretary of State for Multiculturalism, the three federal ministries taking the lead role against hate crimes. [See Appendix B.] A follow-up symposium is being planned for March 1999.

In 1997 the "Commission of Inquiry into the Deployment of Canadian Forces in Somalia" came to an end. The League had had full standing in the Inquiry and as such, exercised its right to cross-examine witnesses and make submissions to the Inquiry. However, the Inquiry was prematurely terminated by the government prior to the addressing of issues of racism and the presence of white supremacists and neo-Nazis in the armed forces. The League was very vocal regarding the possibility of a cover-up, indicated by the premature closing of the Commission. In a statement issued on July 3, 1997, the day after the release of the Commission’s final report "Dishonoured Legacy: The Lessons of the Somalia Affair", League legal counsel Marvin Kurz commented that:

We must strongly commend the Commission for its courage in confronting the truth about the military apparatus and for its vision for the future. However, we are profoundly disappointed with the government for its response, both to the commissioners and the process of inquiry. The government, it would appear, sought to undermine the Inquiry throughout its existence, has never fully supported their work and continues to act in that vein. This is clear in the fashion in which the Inquiry was terminated prior to its thorough completion and now by the government’s support for the military officials clearly discredited by the findings of the Commission. We fear the government will shelve the report and never implement any of the recommendations contained within. We will lose a valuable opportunity to learn from past mistakes.

It can only be hoped that the Inquiry’s commissioned research on recruitment and training will lead to much needed improvement in the mechanisms to ensure that racism and white supremacy will have no place in Canada’s armed forces.

Represented by Honourary Senior Legal Counsel, David Matas, the League appeared before the Supreme Court of Canada on a case dealing with the Canadian Liberty Net which operates a telephone line through which it disseminates hate messages. In 1992, pending the outcome of a human rights tribunal to determine the permanent status of the phone messages, the Federal Court of Canada imposed a temporary restraining order preventing the Canadian Liberty Net from offering the recorded messages, which originated in Vancouver. The organization subsequently began to offer its messages from a telephone number in Washington State. As a result, the Federal Court imposed an interlocutory injunction, ordering the Liberty Net to stop its activities via the USA. On appeal by the Liberty Net, the presiding justice ruled that the Federal Court lacks the power under the Canadian Human Rights Act to issue interlocutory injunctions because they are found to violate freedom of speech. Before the Supreme Court of Canada is the question of whether the Federal Court has the power through the Federal Court Act and/or the Canadian Human Rights Act to issue such an injunction. The decision is expected some time in 1998.

INTERCULTURAL DIALOGUE AND COMMUNITY ACTION

Intercultural dialogue and coalition building ia an essential component of the League’s work and of the struggle to counter antisemitism. Through community action, the League builds ties to other ethnic and religious communities in order to break down stereotypes and develop networks of ongoing support for the fight against racism, antisemitism, bigotry and hate.

As it has been for many Canadians, the issue of national unity has been a primary concern for B’nai Brith members over the past year. Last February, B’nai Brith Canada and its League for Human Rights held a National Unity Symposium that brought together members from across the country to discuss issues, fears and hopes relating to national unity and the future of Canada. Included in the day-long meeting were discussions of "Ethnic vs. Civic Nationalism: The Challenges of Quebec"; "Hate Speech and National Unity"; and "Building National Unity Out of Diversity: Practical Strategies for Governments and NGOs". Out of this symposium, the official position of B’nai Brith on the issue of national unity was developed, including the centrality of the concept of multiculturalism, as well as a clear position of support for those experiencing the daily uncertainty of living in the province of Quebec as it struggles to decide whether it wishes to separate from the rest of Canada. The Symposium report was presented to the Government of Canada.

Over the past year, the League has become very involved in advocating for a public inquiry into the shooting death of unarmed Native protester, Dudley George, at the Ipperwash, Ontario Provincial Park in September 1995. Mr. George was one of a small group of Native Canadians who occupied the Provincial Park after it closed for the season to protest the confiscation of burial grounds located in the park by the Canadian government in the 1940s. He was shot by Ontario Provincial Police Sergeant Kenneth Deane, who was a member of the riot squad that was called to the park. Deane has since been convicted of criminal negligence causing death, but received only a token sentence. Although the Crown is now seeking a stiffer penalty, the sting of the light sentence remains for those who knew Dudley George, and all those concerned by the circumstances of his death. The full story surrounding the stand-off between Native protesters in the park and law enforcement agents has yet to be properly explored despite the trial of Sergeant Deane and the intervening years. Over the past two years there has been a growing feeling among many human rights and faith groups that the full story of the confrontation and the preceding and ensuing events, whatever their nature, should be clearly revealed. To get at the truth, the League for Human Rights has been involved with an Interfaith coalition, and is now part of a broader coalition, to promote awareness of this issue and to call for a full judicial inquiry. To date, the provincial government, the body which must convene such an inquiry, has refused to do so. Initially, they claimed no role in the affair, but recent leaks of minutes from inter-ministerial meetings on the issue and at the time in question, published in the national media, suggest otherwise, and only increase the necessity for a public inquiry.

The six municipalities of Toronto and its many boroughs have, as of January 1, became united as the "mega-city" of Toronto. This has meant sweeping changes in municipal government, both its form and its membership. In the six months leading up to this change, the League was involved with roundtable community consultations, along with other organizations and agencies representing a wide variety of communities across the greater Toronto area. The object of this exercise was to develop a clear and concrete plan to ensure that both the Transition Team appointed to oversee the process and the new City Council were aware of the access and equity issues that have affected Toronto in the past, and will certainly be issues in the mega-city. This includes ensuring that funding for anti-racism training continues, as well as initiatives that support victims of racism and bigotry, new immigrants and refugees to Toronto, the disabled, and the rights of minorities. The coalition met with the Transition Team, organized a mayoral debate, and promoted the issues of access and equity as central campaign issues.

In the wake of the 1996 Canadian visit by Louis Farrakhan to promote the Nation of Islam, the League has increased efforts in some parts of the country to counter Black antisemitism and to promote Black/Jewish relations. Over the past year, the League has been reviewing and evaluating its Black/Jewish Dialogue programming initiatives. With the assistance of a small grant from Canadian Heritage, a manual is currently being produced that is a collection of programs run in the various regions of B’nai Brith Canada, and an analysis of the strengths and weaknesses of these programs. The manual will enable both B’nai Brith members and others to make use of the expertise and creative ideas of members from across the country in planning future programs to strengthen Black/Jewish relations in Canada.

One of the best ways to enhance community relations is to work together on an issue of mutual concern. In Montreal, the research phase of a joint project between the League and the Black Coalition was completed in 1997. The report entitled "Minorities, Youth and the Employment Crisis in Montreal", will be ready in the Spring of 1998 and will recommend an action plan to address the increasing problem of minority youth unemployment in Quebec.

The Women in Interfaith Dialogue continues to break down myths and stereotypes among different faith communities and racial groups. Finding common experiences and common cause, while learning to understand our differences, forges better relations between Christians, Muslims, Buddhists, Hindus, Jews and others. In Winnipeg, the annual Interfaith Seder again attracted over two hundred people who came together in goodwill and friendship. Plans are underway to expand these proactive programs to other regions in 1998.

As we enter 1998, communities around the world are beginning to celebrate International Human Rights Year, commemorating the 50th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. The League will be marking this significant occasion throughout the year with various events across the country, including; a symposium on "Hate on the Internet" in Edmonton, Alberta, the 23rd Annual Media Human Rights Awards in Toronto, and the culminating event of the year, a human rights conference in Regina, Saskatchewan.

This past year was a year of great change in terms of activism, awareness and legal intervention against antisemitism, racism, and hate. We are hopeful that 1998 will bring even greater accomplishments toward freeing Canada from these forces.