Hostility to Israel and anti-Semitism Lives on Within Canada's New Democratic Party

"To remember [the Holocaust and fight anti-Semitism] is to be human; to educate on events past, the responsibility of the present."

"As the years pass, it is our duty to tell this story. To preserve the memory, to learn the lessons, to never, never forget."

"[Today’s children must be taught about the Holocaust] so that they understand the depth to which mankind’s cruelty can plunge."

"Our commitment to fighting racism and antisemitism sits at the heart of those values and freedoms."

Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis  

 

"The thread running through this presidency will be teaching the Holocaust; including combating denial and distortion in the new fields now opened by the [Inter]net."

New IHRA chairman, Greek Ambassador Chris J. Lazaris

 

"[Despite the COVID-19 pandemic]: "Being able to work together across time zones, from Winnipeg to Berlin to Melbourne, required more than just a working microphone and a stable internet connection."

"It required all of us to want to get something done. And we did."

Outgoing chairwoman, German Ambassador Michaela Küchler

 

"[Israel’s embassy in Greece] extends its best wishes for a productive and eventful year."

"Greece taking the leadership of the IHRA during its 200 Anniversary of the Greek War of Independence is a significant message at home and beyond."

"The Embassy of Israel is committed to cooperate with the Greek Chair of IHRA and authorities in sharing the story of Greek Jewish Life, the contribution of the Jewish Community to the country, the horrors of the Holocaust, and the important acts of heroism of individuals who came to the rescue."

"We should learn, remember, honor the memory, and follow the moral lesson of Never Again."

 

"[On the occasion of the handover], we celebrate accomplishments with partners."

"We’ve promoted the IHRA definition of antisemitism, pushed Holocaust education, and called out Holocaust distortion."

"Vigilance against antisemitism and anti-gypsyism is never over!"

German embassy in the United States

Part of an exhibit on the Holocaust supported by the IHRA. Photo: courtesy of IHRA.

 

Canada's New Democratic Party is preparing to host its annual policy convention in the coming week. And this is where, once again, tensions over anti-Semitism and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict persist, threatening to once more divide the New Democratic delegates. A list of potential resolutions has been released by party organizers which are expected to be produced to the virtual floor assuming they are able to survive a vote preceding the event, which is set to take place virtually, on line April 9th to the 11th.

 

A half dozen items articulating solidarity with Palestinian causes or which call for sanctions and stronger condemnation of Israel are included on the list. Over 40 NDP riding associations endorsed a particularly contentious resolution opposing a working definition of anti-Semitism as set out by the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA), The IHRA definition of anti-Semitism was received cautiously by the international community in some places initially. By and large, however, those doubts have been resolved given the non-legally-binding character of the resolution stating: 

“Antisemitism is a certain perception of Jews, which may be expressed as hatred toward Jews. Rhetorical and physical manifestations of antisemitism are directed toward Jewish or non-Jewish individuals and/or their property, toward Jewish community institutions and religious facilities.”

 

The move among some within the political party to resist what it interprets as an "effort by anti-Palestinian lobby groups" to apply moral/political pressure on the party's leadership to suppress debate around the plight of Palestinians is being applauded by a group calling itself the Canadian Foreign Policy Institute. Among its foreign policy positions for Canada, the Canadian Foreign Policy Institute published this simplistically one-sided tirade on its website, to make its position perfectly clear: 

"In the Middle East, Canada has sided with Israel on almost every issue of importance. Since coming to power the Trudeau government has voted against more than fifty UN resolutions upholding Palestinian rights backed by the overwhelming majority of member states. The Canadian government has refused to abide by 2016 UN Security Council Resolution 2334, calling on member states to “distinguish, in their relevant dealings, between the territory of the State of Israel and the territories occupied in 1967.” On the contrary, Ottawa extends economic and trade assistance to Israel’s illegal settlement enterprise. Should it win a seat on the UNSC, Ottawa has stated that it will act as an “asset for Israel” on the Council."

Party members from 17 ridings responded to the floor-potential resolutions (among the 17 some of which whose electoral district associations do not support the IHRA definition) with a signed letter forward to NDP riding presidents: "The NDP policy convention, where at least 99 percent of attendees will not be Jewish, is neither the time nor the place to debate a resolution that condemns the definition of this pervasive hatred for the Jewish people."

 

The IHRA definition of anti-Semitism adopted by the federal Liberal government in 2019, forming part of its anti-racism strategy, has seen the definition condemned by a number of New Democrats. Others among them, including NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh feel the definition can serve as a useful but non-binding educational tool -- perhaps somewhat patronizingly. 

 

According to Richard Marceau, general counsel for the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs, Toronto, hostility to the working definition reflects the attitude of "activists" and "fringe groups". "I believe that there is a small and active and vocal group of NDP-ers that have a suspicious obsession with the State of Israel. And their obsession borders on the unhealthy." For the very obvious fact that endemic hatred emanating from identifiable sources is indeed psychologically psychopathic.