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.
Q&A Rabbi Steven Greenberg: Don’t demonize gay Jews
Temple Kol Ami, a Reform congregation in Thornhill, in April hosted Rabbi Steven Greenberg, often described as the first openly gay Orthodox Jewish rabbi, as its scholar in residence for a weekend of discussion sessions related to homosexuality and the Torah.
The Boston-based rabbi, author and speaker is executive director of Eshel, an organization that promotes acceptance of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender Jews and their families in Orthodox communities.
Film fest revises ad policy after Israeli flag complaint
VANCOUVER — The Vancouver Queer Film Festival has revised its sponsorship and advertising policy after being criticized for accepting an ad that included an Israeli flag.
The VQFF came under fire last summer for an advertisement by Yad b’Yad, a Vancouver-based group that supports the Jewish LGBTQ community. The ad, which appeared in a printed festival guidebook, depicted an Israeli flag alongside a pride flag and was congratulating VQFF on its 26th anniversary.
Canadian Orthodox rabbis note shift on LGBTQ inclusion
While Canadian modern Orthodox rabbis aren’t having the kind of public discussion about including LGBTQ Jews like their counterparts did last month in New York, many say they’ve been grappling with the issue for years and agree there’s been a shift toward greater sensitivity to the issue.
Police find Jews most targeted for hate crimes
TORONTO — With the release of the Toronto Police Service’s annual Hate/Bias Crime Statistical Report, members of the Jewish community might well ask themselves, is the glass half full or half empty?
The 2014 report found that hate crimes reported to police went up by 11 per cent over 2013 and that Jews were the single most targeted group in Toronto, followed by blacks and members of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ) community. The total number of occurrences affecting all groups was 146 – in a city of 2.7 million people.
Standing up for the inclusion of all
It was welcome news for our Kulanu Toronto community when, at the end of February, we heard that Queers Against Israeli Apartheid (QuAIA) had disbanded.
