National handbook aims to combat antisemitism

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This article was published 01/11/2024 (681 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Manitobans who want to understand and combat antisemitism have a new resource in a handbook developed by the federal government.

The Canadian Handbook on the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance Working Definition of Antisemitism, launched Oct. 31, was developed in partnership with the Office of the Special Envoy for Preserving Holocaust Remembrance and Combatting Antisemitism.

It is based on the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance definition on antisemitism, which is “a certain perception of Jews, which may be expressed as hatred toward Jews.” This includes hate directed towards Jews individually, their institutions and religious facilities.

The alliance is an intergovernmental organization with 35 member countries, including Canada. It was founded in 1998 to address issues related to the Holocaust.

The federal government adopted the alliance’s definition of antisemitism in 2019. It was adopted by the Manitoba government in 2022.

The purpose of the handbook is to provide guidance to Canadians on how to address and apply the definition to combat antisemitism within existing Canadian legal and policy frameworks. It offers direction in the areas of law enforcement, the legal system, education, government, workplaces and civil society.

More than 150 Canadians were consulted for the creation of the Canadian handbook, including Belle Jarniewski, executive director of the Jewish Heritage Centre of Western Canada.

“Canada is the first country outside of the European Union to create a contextual resource like this,” said Jarniewski, who is also a member of the Canadian delegation to the alliance. “I’m very proud of that.”

The handbook uses examples from Canada to illustrate what antisemitism looks like in this country, along with ideas for what it is and isn’t, she said.

“Over and over again I hear things that mischaracterize the definition,” said Jarniewski, noting it is not antisemitic to criticize the policies of the nation of Israel.

Such criticism crosses the line when it is different from what is levelled against other countries in terms of its nature, magnitude or severity, when it uses antisemitic tropes, or when it holds Jews in Canada responsible for what is done by the Israeli government, Jarniewski said.

David Matas calls the handbook a positive development.

The Winnipeg lawyer, member of the Canadian delegation to the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance, and senior honorary counsel to B’nai Brith Canada said it will help address the “misinformation and disinformation” that has occurred in Canada.

He hopes it will lead to “greater understanding of the definition, dispel the controversy around it and lead to a more comprehensive adoption of the definition, particularly at universities where mischaracterizations of the definitions have led to hesitations over adoption,” he said, noting that no Manitoba university has adopted the definition.

In a response to the launch, Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East warned the handbook will promote censorship and have a “chilling effect on pro-Palestine speech and activism.”

The organization, which aims to promote justice, development and peace in the Middle East and in Canada, said it believes the working definition of antisemitism promoted by the handbook “purposefully conflates criticism of Israeli policy with antisemitism and is frequently deployed by supporters of Israel to unfairly shut down Palestinians perspectives.”

It demanded the government immediately withdraw it from circulation.

Independent Jewish Voices, the United Jewish People’s Order and the Jewish Faculty Network also objected to its publication.

“We believe the adoption of the IHRA working definition is itself antisemitic, because it conflates critique of Israel with racism toward Jews as a whole, and promotes anti-Palestinian racism,” the three groups said in a statement.

“We call for the government to immediately retract the handbook, and for all Canadians to refuse its implementation as it is unfit for addressing antisemitism and poses major risks for advocates of Palestinian human rights.”

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