Some good advice for politicians of every stripe
The CJN goes to press at noon on Mondays. Most weeks, we work on putting the paper together until the last possible minute, in order to ensure it’s as up-to-date as possible. But sometimes, major news happens in the time between when the paper is printed and it gets delivered to your door (though readers can cut down on that lag by logging on to the digital edition of The CJN).
This is one of those weeks.
Jerusalem College of Technology event honours Oliver
TORONTO — An Israeli school that integrates ultra-Orthodox Jews into the workforce held its primary fundraising event of the year last week in an evening that saw Finance Minister Joe Oliver receive an honorary degree.
“We are here tonight to support a revolutionary economic and social change,” said Larry Krauss, chair of the Canadian Friends of the Jerusalem College of Technology (JCT), at the March 12 fundraiser, at Toronto’s Ritz-Carlton hotel. “This is the most significant story unfolding in Israel today.”
McGill undergraduates defeat BDS motion – again
MONTREAL — The McGill University undergraduates’ association defeated a motion that urged the university to divest from companies “profiting from the illegal occupation of Palestinian territories” by a vote of 276 to 212, with nine abstentions.
The secret ballot was held at the winter semester General Assembly of the Students’ Society of McGill University (SSMU) on March 15.
The motion was put forward by the student club Solidarity for Palestinian Human Rights (SPHR).
Jewish groups slam Trudeau for ‘none is too many’ remarks
Jewish community groups say federal Liberal leader Justin Trudeau’s went too far in invoking Canada’s Nazi-era exclusionary immigration policies when he criticized the Harper government’s citizenship swearing in policy.
The Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs (CIJA) called the remark inappropriate and inaccurate, while B’nai Brith Canada and Friends of Simon Wiesenthal Center for Holocaust Studies (FSWC) also chided Trudeau.
Sephardi delegation heads to Ottawa, meets PM
For the first time in Canadian history, an official delegation of Sephardi community leaders, activists, philanthropists and spiritual leaders from across the country visited Parliament Hill and met with the prime minister, ambassadors and other dignitaries.
Parliament unanimously condemns rise of anti-Semitism
OTTAWA — The House of Commons has unanimously adopted a motion condemning the rise of anti-Semitism around the world.
The Feb. 24 motion grew out of a four-hour discussion, called a “take-note” debate, in the House on the rise of global anti-Semitism.
Cotler to receive Law Society’s first Human Rights Award
TORONTO — You can add the Law Society of Upper Canada’s first-ever Human Rights Award to the list of honours bestowed on Montreal MP Irwin Cotler.
Cotler, a professor of law and former minister of justice and attorney general of Canada, will receive the inaugural award at a special evening on Feb. 12 at Osgoode Hall in downtown Toronto.
Justin Trudeau’s deplorable comments
We live in difficult times. Vicious terrorist groups like ISIS, Al Qaeda and Boko Haram threaten our safety and security. Last year’s tragic Ottawa shootings stunned the entire nation. The senseless murders at the French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo’s building, followed by two hostage situations, shocked everyone who truly believes in democracy, liberty and freedom.
Holocaust, Auschwitz liberation marked in Ottawa ceremonies
OTTAWA — Leading dignitaries commemorated International Holocaust Remembrance Day on Jan. 27 at Ottawa City Hall, along with Holocaust survivors and more than 300 guests who gathered to observe the annual event, which this year coincided with the 70th anniversary of the liberation of the Auschwitz-Birkenau death camp.
Jews and aboriginals make a powerful team
Jews get it. We understand bigotry and discrimination. More sadly, we understand how otherwise civilized people and nations can target the most vulnerable amongst us. We also know what it means to be a stranger in a place you call home while simultaneously having a visceral appreciation of what it means to be an aboriginal person. As Irwin Cotler is fond of saying “Jews were the aboriginal people of Israel.”
