The world watched last week as politicians from all over the globe trekked to Israel to attend the funeral of Israeli statesman Shimon Peres. Leaders from over 70 countries, including Canada, the United States, France, Germany, Egypt, Jordan, and even the Palestinian Authority, gathered to pay their respects to the former president in the largest …
At the beginning of the school year, the pro-Israel club I belong to, Students Supporting Israel (SSI) at Ryerson University, tabled on the university’s Clubs Day. To our relief, we were ignored by anti-Israel and antisemitic hecklers and received a positive and welcome response from students. One distressing incident did occur, however, when a member of our …
For a moment try and imagine that Israel is the prettiest girl in her high school class. She is smart, kind, giving, and for the most part, admired by her peers. Now imagine that the members of the United Nations General Assembly (hereafter known as the UNGA) are her classmates. Expectedly, you’re going to have the …
As a private practice lawyer engaged in refugee, immigration and international human rights work, the majority of the clients I see are refugee claimants or relatives in Canada trying to help family member refugees abroad. The international human rights work I do is mostly advocacy for NGOs on matters relating to grave violations of international …
Anti-Zionism and the Freedom of Religious Expression for Jewish People Read More »
Montreal’s Jewish community is about to mark its first Rosh Hashanah in many years minus the presence of three extraordinary spiritual leaders: Rabbis Sidney Shoham, Ron Aigen and Chaim Steinmetz. Rabbi Shoham served Beth Zion Congregation in Côte Saint-Luc for 50 years. Although officially retired when he passed away suddenly on Sept. 20, 2015, he …
Changing of the Guard: Three Montreal-area Synagogues Welcome New Rabbis Read More »
Earlier this week, an Orthodox Jewish student at Montreal’s Concordia University was reportedly bullied by a peer over his decision to wear a kippah. The individual justified this statement by claiming that Concordia is an “Arabic university.” Unfortunately, this kind of incident isn’t entirely surprising. And, while this may not be the same Concordia University that …
Every child has fears that appear silly to adults. Mine was the telephone. For years, and even during my adolescence, I would be anxiously startled every time it rang. Finally, after years of exposure and some therapy, the irrational fear dissipated. A couple of years later, I became a prominent member of the Zionist community, …
I Get Harassed Because I’m Jewish – Does Anybody Care? Read More »
After Sept. 11, 2001 fear became a major player in world politics, as people voted for the leaders they felt would keep them safe in an unstable world. As we got further from Sept. 11, and the horrors faded a bit from our memories, fear came to play less of a role in choosing our …
Fear and Loathing in the U.S. Presidential Election Read More »
If a provincial election were held today in Quebec, Premier Philippe Couillard’s Liberals would likely be back in office with another majority government. It’s not that the Liberals are doing so well. They only lead the polls by default since there won’t be another vote in Quebec for two years. But the opposition Parti-Québecois will …
Who Will Win in the PQ Leadership Race? Cloutier or Lisée? Read More »
On Sept. 20, Dr. Asher Grunis, former President of the Supreme Court of Israel, visited Windsor, Ont. to discuss the uniqueness of Israeli constitutional law. He was accompanied by Amanda Hohmann, Director of the League for Human Rights at B’nai Brith Canada. After receiving his law degree (LL.B.) in 1968 from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, …
An Evening with Dr. Asher Grunis, Former President of the Supreme Court of Israel Read More »
