Surprise, Violent Intimidation Works! Jews Need Not Apply...
"For Judaism, the Menorah was chosen over the Star of David due to its purely religious significance, while the Star of David carries political connotations with the State of Israel."York Region School Board"When the theatre received some threatening phone calls and letters over renting their venue to the Hamilton Jewish Federation for a Jewish cultural film festival, instead of standing up to the hate, they caved to it."Judy Zelikovitz, Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs"[The Exhibition had] got a complaint from a group of Vancouver artists who didn't think I should be showing because of the war in Israel and Gaza...""She told me they were fearful of being vandalized."Dina Goldstein, Vancouver art photographer
It's
open season on disinvitations going out to artists of every form of
expression in Canada if they're Jewish, have an Israeli background,
empathize with the victims of October 7's rapist dream, even if the art
they produce is met with public acclaim for its innovative aesthetic,
and presents as authentically unique. The world was treated to a
dramatic hate-fest in the recently concluded Eurovision Song Contest
when the Israeli entrant in the event held in Sweden was met by mobs who
demanded the exclusion of Israeli singer Eden Golan, and other
contestants disavowed her eligibility to compete, as an Israeli.
In
the final analysis, though she was unmercifully hounded by ravening
detractors, requiring a large detail of police protection, she was
declared fit to compete and did her country proud. Her vote-expressed
popularity by the greater popular vote from the television audience
accounting for half the score's total, saw Israel at second place, which
ended up balancing the total score which brought a fifth place win to
Eden Golan, overturning the contest judges' low approval count. Justice
righted injustice in that instance.
Closer
to home for the Canadian public, Dina Goldstein, a Vancouver
photographer whose Dollhouse photo series staged through a series of
tableaus of whimsy featuring domestic scenes using actors representing a
Barbie-and-Ken spin-off pair that held a large public appeal, was
cancelled for inclusion in an exhibition at the Vancouver Centre of
International Contemporary Art. Born in Tel Aviv, organizers of the
exhibit, citing fears of vandalism cancelled the appearance of her art.
In The Dollhouse Art Mur |
Jewish
holidays are denoted by the York Regional District School Board with an
icon of a menorah. Holidays of other religions are marked with
representative symbols such as a cross for Christians, and the star and
crescent for Islamic holidays. Administrators had avoided using the Star
of David for Jewish holidays although it is Judaism's traditional
symbol, for fear of alienating non-Jews, and reminding students of its
link to Israel. A public backlash convinced the school board to change
to the Star of David.
Non-Jewish playwright Christopher Morris who wrote The Runner --
the story of an Israeli volunteer paramedic attending the aftermath of a
terror attack, deciding to treat the suspected Palestinian perpetrator
instead of her Israeli victim -- which had enjoyed great acclaim for its
"accessible
yet poignant conduit for audiences to better understand the people and
the fractured lives that are to be found in the fissures of this
heightened political and social division", which failed to save it from the ignominy of cancellation.
The
Belfry Theatre in Victoria, British Columbia faced a strong backlash
when it decided to capitulate to protesters who had vandalized the venue
with "Free Palestine" stickers and graffiti in their 'cultural boycott'
of any performance art that had the even remotest link to Israel.
Despite that the petition presented to the Belfry to recant the
cancellation had far more signatures that the petition that demanded the
play's cancellation, they upheld the cancellation justifying it by
claiming the play "Does not ensure the well-being of all segments of our community."
The
Playhouse Cinema in Hamilton had agreed to host a three-day Hamilton
Jewish Film Festival in early April. Three weeks prior to the festival's
start, the festival was informed they would not, after all, be welcome
in view of "safety and security concerns at this particularly sensitive time", citing "numerous security and safety related emails, phone calls, and social media messages"
targeting the Playhouse Cinema. Israeli filmmaker Yahav Winner,
(murdered by Hamas on October 7)'s The Boy was to have been screened.
In
Peterborough, Ontario, an International Women's Day event was to have
featured cyclist Leah Goldstein who had three years earlier become the
first woman to win the solo category of the gruelling endurance Race
Across America. Pre-event promotions had featured the address by this
award-winning cyclist who planned to describe her life story of
overcoming 'bullies, sexism, and terrorism'. She was cancelled for the
sin of having been born in Canada, but raised in Israel.
Massive
international pressure overturned a decision by the International Ice
Hockey Federation to cancel the Israeli national team which had some
Canadian players on board because, they were informed, their safety
could not be guaranteed at the arena in Bulgaria where the tournament
was located close to a "large student population from the affected areas in the Middle East".
Although their decision was reversed, for future tournaments the IIHF
has crossed Israel off the roster even though Israel swept the
tournament, winning gold.
International Ice Hockey Federation |
Labels: 2023, Hamas Slaughter in Israel, Israel Defense Forces Invasion of Gaza, Jewish/Israeli Cancellations in Canada, October 7
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