FEATURE: Jacques Parizeau’s 1993 CJN interview
Former Quebec premier and longtime Parti Québécois stalwart Jacques Parizeau, who famously blamed ethnic minorities for the "Yes" side's loss in the 1995 referendum on Quebec sovereignty, died June 1 after a long illness.
In 2013, Parizeau acknowledged that in the razor-thin loss on Oct. 30, 1995, for which he blamed “money and the ethnic vote,” he was referring to the combined efforts of the Jewish, Italian and Greek communities on behalf of the "No" side.
Quebec LGBTQ leaders to meet Israeli counterparts
MONTREAL — Twelve leaders of Quebec’s LGBTQ community are heading to Israel to take part in the Tel Aviv Pride Parade and events connected to the 40th anniversary of Aguda, the national LGBTQ association.
The June 6-14 trip is the first tailored specifically to the gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgendered and queer community in Canada sponsored by the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs (CIJA).
The carefully selected group includes both those prominent in LGBTQ organizations and others with a public profile who belong to that community.
Israel-Canada business growing on several fronts
Business ties between Canada and Israel continue to expand.
Earlier this month, Reza Moridi, Ontario’s minister of research and innovation, visited Israel, where he and Avi Hasson, chief scientist of Israel’s Ministry of the Economy, each announced $3 million in funding for companies collaborating in joint research and development projects in the high-tech field.
FEATURE: Jewish funeral costs vary by location
It’s something none of us likes to think about, but we all know it’s coming.
Death is inevitable, yet it remains a taboo subject in our society, surrounded by secrecy and swirling with the mystery of the unknown, even among many Jews.
In an effort to get some cold, hard facts The CJN did some research into the cost of Jewish burial across Canada. Not surprisingly, the price tag differs vastly according to the city in which you’re laid to rest and the status of your membership at a particular synagogue in that locale.
Week of May 14, 2015
Looking at maps
Prof. Mira Sucharov finds it “difficult to know where to begin” in explaining Israel’s “military occupation over millions of Palestinians.” What I actually find most difficult is to understand her rationale and the faulty analogies she derives from ignoring key facts (“Why is the Green Line not on our schools’ maps?” May 7).
Ex-MNA Lawrence Bergman lauded for 20 years of service
MONTREAL — Within the Liberal caucus he became known as “The Berminator,” former premier Jean Charest confided at a community tribute to Lawrence Bergman.
“No one was more persistent, more determined, more argumentative,” Charest told a capacity audience of more than 600 at Adath Israel Poale Zedek Congregation on May 11.
N.S. immigration program for Russian Israelis on hold
HALIFAX — A successful immigration program that brought more than 120 Russian Israelis to Nova Scotia since 2008 has been temporarily halted due to federal policy changes that no longer give weight to the Jewish community’s support for newcomers when their applications are assessed.
As part of efforts to revitalize a dwindling Jewish community, the Atlantic Jewish Council (AJC) attracted Israeli Jews, mostly with Russian roots, to Halifax, where they found jobs, bought homes and cars, and placed hundreds of children in schools.
No charges for ‘Dawgfather’ over tweets, Halifax police say
HALIFAX — Halifax hot dog vendor Jerry Reddick, also known as the Dawgfather, has avoided charges after he posted offensive and disturbing anti-Semitic remarks on social media in January.
“An investigation into the nature of comments posted on a social media site in January has concluded without charges,” a spokesperson for Halifax Regional Police said in a statement March 30,
Halifax Hillel delivers chicken soup to sick students
HALIFAX — Spring might be hitting the rest of Canada, but in Halifax, snow banks still line the streets, temperatures remain below zero – and colds are still rampant.
Atlantic Hillel in Halifax knows that when students are sick, it can take all their energy just to get out of bed, let alone make themselves comfort food.
That’s why Hillel created a “chicken soup hotline.”
CJN DEBATE: Camp Solelim fosters Jewish identity
A Jewish camp designed specifically for Jewish campers: who would have thought that, in 2015, the very idea of such a camp would spark any discussion?
Certainly not the founders of Camp Solelim, who established it 50 years ago to provide Jewish teenagers aged 14 and 15 with a summer experience that would instil pride in their Jewish heritage and in Israel – the Jewish State that, back then, was only a teenager itself.
