How Novel: "To Tackle Hate Head On"
"I met with representatives from the Pride communities and had an open discussion about their concerns.""As a police service, we fully support the 2SLGBTQQIA+ communities, and we are working with them to ensure that people who attend public events feel safe doing so""We continue to work toward a strong relationship with the 2SLGBTQQIA+ communities to further build trust."Ottawa police Chief Eric Stubbs"We've been warning about rising hate across Canada and in Ottawa for years now. These numbers just show that what we've been hearing and saying absolutely lines up with the data.""A lot of our institutions and our elected officials think this is an anomaly and that it's going to go away. That's not how you tackle hate.""...It's not an anomaly. It shows that hate-motivated groups are pushing an agenda, and it's galvanizing homophobes and transphobes to be bolder in their acts of hate and harassment."Fae Johnstone, executive director, Wisdom2Action"I've not seen the level of hate as I have in the last six months. The rise in online hate, but also coupled with people showing up with signs, targeting artists, targeting community leaders.""I see people using the trans and queer communities to try to further their political gain, to use diversity and inclusion as a wedge issue to pursue a regressive political issue.""People are making money off hate and division. They're fundraising off it. They're running livestreams. They're building fan bases by showing up and disrupting events."Toby Whitfield, executive director, Capital Pride
According
to Ottawa Police Services reports of hate and/or bias-motivated
incidents soared by 23.5 percent in the first six months of 2023. 158 of
221 reported hate-motivated incidents deemed criminal, 63 determined to
be hate-motivated, but non-criminal. One formal charge of public
incitement of hatred, according to police, while twenty-three
individuals were charged with 56 counts of hate-motivated offences.
As
the national capital of the country, reports ranging from robbery to
threats to assault and harassment in the city of Ottawa have been noted;
offences of this type steadily increasing; 340 reports filed in 2021,
377 submitted in 2022. An online campaign at Act4QueerSafety.ca issued
six calls to action for the federal government "to tackle hate head on".
Crimes reported in Ottawa in the first half of 2023:
- 62 incidents of mischief to property;
- 25 threats uttered to a person;
- 19 level one assaults;
- 15 incidents of criminal stalking or harassment;
- 6 incidents of mischief to a cultural property.
- 2SLGBTQQIA+ -- 32 incidents
- Jewish -- 36 incidents;
- Muslim -- 7 incidents;
- Black -- 30 incidents
- Chinese -- 8 incidents.
"For some reason, Peterborough seems to have become somewhat of a hot-bed of extremist right-wing sentiment.""But the Jewish community itself has not been specifically targeted, just tarred with the same brush, or by inference, a slightly larger brush."Ron Molnar, spokesman, Jewish Community Centre of Peterborough"This increase in antisemitism we're seeing across the United States doesn't stop at the border unfortunately.""It's definitely an expanding network. It started its expansion probably in 2020 when it was quite small, and it's grown to what it is today. And that, unfortunately, includes Canadians."Carla Hill, director of investigative research, Anti-Defamation League
Sampling of fliers distributed by GDL in 2022 |
According
to Peterborough Mayor Jeff Leal, the hate messages circulating in his
city, originate in the United States. Not only he but others
representing the Jewish community in Canada point to the U.S.-based hate
group Goyim Defense League (GDL), described as a 'loose' network
of people on the internet who stream antisemitic content and cook up
stunts to harass Jews. The very name of their group represents a very
special type of harassment, a mock-up of the Jewish Defense League,
launched to protect Jews from racists just like those linked to this new
neo-Nazi group.
As
for the Peterborough police -- no individuals or groups responsible for
the flyers have been specifically named, nor have any arrests been
made. Anti-semitic and anti-Black graffiti was discovered on an city
elementary school. From central Canada to Saskatoon, where antisemitic
flyers were also found earlier this year -- also believed linked to GDL.
In
2020 the city of 84,000 residents some 125 kilometres northeast of
Toronto, there was a rate of 19.4 police-reported hate crimes per
100,000 population, highest in the country, with Ottawa taking second
billing at 18.7 cases per100,000 population, in 2021. Both cities well
in excess of the national average of 8.8, according to Statistics
Canada. Over half of hate crimes across Canada motivated by religion
targeted Jewish people in 2021.
In
2022, 2,769 antisemitic incidents were recorded in 2022 in Canada, with
74 percent occurring online; a category that included social media
posts and comments. As for as Dan Panneton, director of allyship and
community engagement for the Friends of Simon Wiesenthal Center,
hate-related incidents linked to the GDL are on the upsurge, influencing
online sympathizers to pass out flyers and propaganda shared on the
internet; their strategic key.
"What this does is attract attention and it builds the perception that there is a significant Nazi presence in the area",
he explained. Points of view and societally-impairing theories are
always glad to see they've plenty of like-minded company. The GDL
community appears to have grown substantially in influence in the United
States, its message seeping into other countries. As an example,
according to Carla Hill, an estimated 100 people actively distribute
propaganda, and behind them are thousands who support it.
GDL participants who posed as Jews while distributing propaganda in Canyon, Texas in 2021. |
"Hate operates on various levels. It's not just property damage and vandalism -- hate also operates on the psychological and moral plane.""It is cowardice that keeps them from being seen and what they are trying to do is have a psychological effect on members of the community."Gerry Almendrades, security adviser, Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs
Labels: Canada's Capital City, Goyim Defence League, Hate Bias
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