(Jeremy Simes / The Canadian Press)
December 7, 2023
REGINA – B’nai Brith Canada commends the Saskatchewan Legislative Assembly’s Privileges Committee for condemning radical anti-Israel protesters who on Nov. 20 stormed the province’s capital building while chanting genocidal slogans.
On Tuesday, MLA Don Morgan (Saskatoon Southeast) read into the assembly’s permanent record a letter from B’nai Brith expressing concerns about the recent disruption, which featured calls for genocide such as “From the River to the Sea, Palestine Will be Free” – a slogan that calls for the ethnic cleansing of Jews from their ancestral homeland.
Our letter was read again Wednesday by Jeremy Harrison, Minister of Immigration and Career Training, at a special Privileges Committee session of MLAs that addressed the previous month’s disruption.
Disturbingly, one MLA on the Committee chose to read a letter from a radical fringe group in an attempt to justify the use of the hateful and genocidal slogan, “From the River to the Sea…”
Violent incitement has become commonplace at anti-Israel rallies across Canada since Oct. 7, with “From the River to the Sea” being one of the most commonly heard refrains.
To counter the normalization of incitement targeting the Jewish community, B’nai Brith has prepared a fact sheet for educators, explaining the slogan’s troublesome history and hateful nature. The document will be distributed to primary and secondary schools across the country.
“The pre-meditated anarchy witnessed in the Saskatchewan legislature cannot be justified,” said Michael Mostyn, B’nai Brith Canada’s Chief Executive Officer. “The Jewish community is under assault. Vainly attempting to contextualize genocidal slogans only exacerbates the unprecedented wave of incitement against Canadian Jewry.
“The strong stance taken by Premier [Scott] Moe and his caucus against hate and in support of the province’s Jewish community is commendable and appreciated. All Saskatchewan MLAs should rally around the Premier’s leadership in this matter, the only path forward is striving for peace, order and good government.”
