Concern about rising antisemitism dominated a meeting between representatives from Winnipeg’s Jewish community and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Thursday.
The meeting, which was organized by Winnipeg South Centre Member of Parliament Ben Carr, was attended by about a dozen Jewish leaders.
“It was a chance for leaders and grassroots members to express how they are feeling, while also providing meaningful ways in which bridges can be built together to address the rise in antisemitism,” Carr said.
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Prime Minister Justin Trudeau met with leaders of Winnipeg’s Jewish community Thursday.
The goal of the meeting, Carr said, was to give the prime minister a deeper understanding of Jewish encounters with hate and how the government can help.
It’s especially important as Jewish students return to classes next week, with the high holidays of Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur in October, and the first anniversary of the Oct. 7 Hamas-led attack on Israel, Carr said.
Jewish Federation of Winnipeg chief executive officer Jeff Lieberman said it was important for Trudeau to hear directly from members of the city’s Jewish community.
“We discussed the rise in antisemitism after October 7,” he said, adding “it has created real safety concerns for the Jewish community. Many members of the Jewish community in Winnipeg are afraid to publicly identify as Jews.”
Gustavo Zentner, vice president for Manitoba and Saskatchewan for the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs, said it was clear the prime minister “was concerned about the kind of Canada we are living in today, with so much unrest, discrimination and hate.”
It was also clear Trudeau understands it’s not only the Jewish community that is feeling this way, Zentner said, and that the safety of all Canadians is important.
“We told him we acknowledge that navigating the competing and, at times, conflicting demands related to the conflict between Israel and Hamas has not been easy for the Government of Canada,” Zentner said, adding the Jewish community also recognizes the suffering of civilians in Gaza.
Belle Jarniewski was also impressed with the prime minister’s responses.
“Our community, which once felt safe, no longer feels safe,” said the executive director of the Jewish Heritage Centre of Western Canada. “He seemed to understand that.”
Among the specific asks made to the prime minister at the meeting was the need for funding to hire security guards and off-duty police for special events and the high holidays; the enforcement of existing anti-hate speech laws and expansion of those laws; mandated anti-hate and antisemitism training for education programs at Canadian universities and a federal mechanism for monitoring and reporting about hate and antisemitism in Canada.
Carr said he hoped all communities could come together and heal.
“Now is the time for Jews, Muslims, and all Winnipeggers to work towards the critical task of repairing relationships, reaching out to build bridges, and setting forward a path to peace in our community.”
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John Longhurst
Faith reporter
John Longhurst has been writing for Winnipeg’s faith pages since 2003. He also writes for Religion News Service in the U.S., and blogs about the media, marketing and communications at Making the News.
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