TORONTO (AP) 鈥� is failing Jewish Canadians and the community is being brutally targeted by hate, Prime Minister Mark Carney said Monday.
Carney said across Canada, has surged to levels not seen in the post-World War II era. He noted that last year over two-thirds of all religion-motivated hate crimes were directed at Jewish Canadians. Jews make up only 1% of the population.
鈥淭he horror and shame are global. Our actions must be local. They start with clearly admitting that Canada鈥檚 civic compact is failing Jewish Canadians,鈥� Carney said at Holy Blossom Temple in Toronto.
Carney said antisemites in Canada have fired bullets at Jewish schools and thrown firebombs at synagogues and attacked community centers. He said they have targeted Jewish-owned businesses and drove Jewish students from common spaces on university campuses.
Carney said antisemitism plagues But he said the crisis of is “specific, severe and demands a targeted response.鈥�
There has been a sharp rise in antisemitic incidents globally since the Israel-Hamas war began on Oct. 7, 2023.
鈥淪omething important happened: Canada finally said the quiet part out loud,” Harley Finkelstein, a prominent Jewish Canadian and president of the e-commerce company Shopify, posted on social media.
Noah Shack, the CEO of the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs, said before the speech that the Canadian government must do more to strengthen community security and combat hate.
Carney said his government has introduced legislation over the last year to combat antisemitism and other forms of hatred. He said $75 million (US $54 million) in funding will provide faith-based institutions with things like security infrastructure and additional security personnel.
鈥淚t pains me that we had to commit $75 million to this, any dollar to this,鈥� Carney said.
The prime minister also said a new Ministerial Advisory Council on Rights, Equality and Inclusion will examine the nature, scale and drivers of antisemitism. It will measure its impacts and investments in education, prevention and community safety will follow, his office said.
鈥淚 want to be clear about what these potential measures are, and what they are not. They are not curtailments of freedom of expression. They are not constraints on legitimate criticism of any government on any subject anywhere,鈥� Carney said.
鈥淭hey are the basic standards we owe one another, in our shared public institutions, to ensure that no Canadian community is driven from those institutions by hatred.鈥�
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