GUEST VOICE: Community needs unity, not uniformity
Democratic engagement is not an absolute phenomenon. Emerging democracies, with relatively little experience in the practice of free and fair elections, often serve as the backdrop for violence, intimidation, and voting irregularities. That is why the international community will frequently volunteer election-monitoring teams to help guide the process.
JDL protesters greet Trudeau at private fundraiser
TORONTO — Liberal party Leader Justin Trudeau was greeted with calls of “We love our prime minister,” “Harper” and even “no traitors here” as he arrived at an Aug. 26 fundraising event at the home of pharmaceutical magnate and philanthropist Barry Sherman.
COVER STORY: Where do the parties stand on Israel
The Conservatives, Liberals and NDP have all expressed strong support for the Jewish state. Is there any difference between them?
Line up the platforms of the three main political parties, and despite the rhetoric, they are all solid allies of Israel.
GUEST VOICE: Why I’ll be at the JDL protest outside Barry Sherman’s house
World Jewry is blessed with many things. Among those blessings are our leaders in public office and the private sector.
In the public sector, we are blessed with Benjamin Netanyahu, the prime minister of Israel, who has fought on behalf of Israel and the Jewish People on the battlefield, in the Knesset, at the United Nations and in countless political arenas. His pedigree is proven, in that his brother made the ultimate sacrifice in 1976 when rescuing Jewish hostages at Entebbe who were hijacked by Palestinian terrorists.
Is it kosher to invoke the Shoah in politics?
The recent backlash against York Centre Conservative MP Mark Adler for noting in campaign literature and on his website that he’s the son of a Holocaust survivor raises larger questions about the appropriateness of referencing the Shoah in political and campaign rhetoric.
Former Montreal-area Liberal MP Raymonde Folco, herself a child Holocaust survivor, was among those who criticized Adler for, as she put it, “us[ing] the Holocaust in this way, for personal ends.”
CAMPAIGN NOTEBOOK: Jewish issues at centre of partisan sniping
Jewish issues and candidates made headlines last week and became the subject of some distasteful political rhetoric on the campaign trail.
In Alberta, a 21-year-old hijab-wearing university student resigned Aug. 18 as the Liberal candidate in the Tory stronghold of Calgary Nose Hill a day after conservative activists publicized noxious tweets from her past.
Whatever your politics, personal attacks are out of line
Last week, I received an email from Barry and Honey Sherman. I know the Shermans quite well, mostly because of our common interest in charitable causes, especially in the Jewish community. They’re among the major benefactors of UJA Federation of Greater Toronto’s annual campaign, which provides material support to the poor, seniors, Holocaust survivors, day schools, camps and much more.
JDL to picket Sherman-hosted Jewish fundraiser for Trudeau
TORONTO – The Jewish Defence League (JDL) says it’s planning to picket a private fundraising event featuring Liberal party Leader Justin Trudeau and York Centre candidate Michael Levitt at the home of businessman and philanthropist Barry Sherman.
The Aug. 26 protest “is absolutely going to be peaceful” and participants hope to engage contributors to the Liberal party as they enter Sherman’s home, said JDL leader Meir Weinstein.
MP corrects Holocaust survivor claim in online bio
TORONTO — Conservative MP Mark Adler has removed a reference in his online biography in which he described himself as the first child of a Holocaust survivor to be elected to Parliament.
The move came after an Aug. 17 CJN story revealed that Raymonde Folco, a Liberal who served as a Montreal-area MP from 1997 to 2011, preceded Adler in that distinction, and that Folco was herself a child survivor of the Holocaust.
Calgary Liberal candidate withdraws over offensive tweets
Ala Buzreba, the 21-year-old Liberal candidate in Calgary Nose Hill, has withdrawn from the federal election campaign after vicious tweets attacking readers were revealed.
Buzreba apologized on Aug. 18, for the tweets saying they were “made a long time ago, as a teenager, but that is no excuse.”
“They do not reflect my views, who I am as a person, or my deep respect for all communities in our country,” she stated on her Twitter page.
