Anti-Semitism in Montreal Belies Greater Issue

Members of Montreal’s visible Lubavitch community who live in the Côte des Neiges district of Montreal are afraid to go out of their homes, even during broad daylight, in the wake of several recently reported acts of violence, the Jewish Tribune reported.

Similarly, three locations in the Outremont region of Montreal, an area with a high density Chassidic population, found swastikas painted on various properties the other week.

“I live in the area and if I compare the situation now to five years ago there is a serious problem,” Rabbi Mendel Marasow, executive director of Beth Rivkah Academy in Côte des Neiges, told the Jewish Tribune.

“There is a gang atmosphere, with tough individuals walking the streets. Last week a man got mugged walking home from shul at 8:30 in the morning. It is uncomfortable and unsafe out there. Is it anti-Semitic? Listen, all I can say is that Jews make good targets.”

An e-mail from the organization Anshei Lubavitch, which has received numerous responses over several days, charges that Montreal police have been “passive” in reacting to several localized incidents, most recently the robbery of a 12-year-old boy.

“Were it not for a few volunteers that followed the perpetrators this would have been just another complaint to our police department, Station 26, which would have been swept under the rug,” the e-mail says.

Other crimes are also said to have taken place, including the breaking of windows of six Jewish homes “without any arrests being made,” the glass doors of a study being shattered and the mugging of a pregnant Jewish woman in Vezina Park, Montreal.

Interestingly, however, there are different perspectives on the situation.

“I don’t think that we should exaggerate what has gone on recently,” Adam Atlas, President of the Quebec Jewish Congress told Shalom Life. “There have been some instances, but we are not alarmed. We are concerned on a broader level with the climate of Quebec society as a whole right now.”

According to Atlas, Quebec is engaged in a sort of self-examination these days, regarding the relationship between the majority French speaking Catholic population, and the various ethnic groups that now constitute an important part of society.

“We as Jews don’t consider ourselves newcomers to the province,” explains Atlas. “We have 250 years of Jewish history in Montreal, and we consider ourselves Quebecers like everyone else. “

“We also think it’s important,” he says, “that our politicians take the high road in this debate, and find ways to see the value in the richness of our diversity, rather than asking minorities to jump through hoops for the province as a whole.”

The debate to which Atlas is referring is concerned with the term “reasonable accommodation,” which, according to Atlas, presupposes two classes of citizens: one that wants to be accommodated, and the other that is doing the accommodating.

“This, of course, is not a healthy way to look at citizenship,” he says. “So we are speaking out along those lines, in all of our interactions with the media and politicians, as the Quebec Jewish Congress.”

The dispute seems to be evolving, as well, into a debate on the issue of “secular society,” or the idea that a state should not be supporting any particular religion, or religion at all.

“We support something called open secularism,” says Atlas, “which is an approach that allows a state to remain neutral to religion, but also recognize the fundamental freedom of its citizens to educate their children and one another about their religious heritage.”

According to Atlas, the Quebec Jewish Congress is concerned with the way the debate is going right now, because it puts into question some key Jewish institutions (schools, daycares, etc.) which he calls “cornerstones” of the Montreal community.

“We are working to protect them,” he says.

According to B’nai Brith Canada, in 2009 Quebec alone saw 373 incidents of anti-Semitism, 288 of these which qualify as harassment, 77 as vandalism, and 8 of which were acts of violence.

Out of the total number of incidents, 319 of these occurred in Montreal. This number represents a 58.7 per cent increase from the 201 cases reported in 2008.

The Steven Roth Institute for the Study of Contemporary Anti-Semitism has said that major violent manifestations of anti-Semitic incidents in Canada as a whole jumped from 559 in 2008, to 1,129 in 2009.

The figure for January 2009 during the war in Gaza and its immediate aftermath was the highest total ever recorded for a single month.

The Institute also reported that the number of anti-Semitic incidents on Canadian campuses has increased almost four-fold since 2006, when only 36 were reported. The most serious manifestations, including violence, occurred at Toronto’s York University.

According to Adam Atlas, however, “These [Canada-wide] stats are not reflected in Montreal. In fact, I think those very same statistics would indicate a decrease within Quebec, but I can tell you with confidence that it’s not indicative of what we’re experiencing.”

The real problem in Quebec, says Atlas, is more systemic and nationalistic in nature. “The debate going on in Quebec society right now is difficult for us to observe and participate in [as Jews] because some participants (politicians, commentators, etc.) are putting into question our fundamental institutions and rights,” he explains. “They are supporting a Christian version for example, we’ll still have Christmas as a state holiday, but Jews won’t be able to take their days off - that’s the kind of issue we’re looking at now.”

“And don’t forget,” Atlas adds. “There’s a crucifix in the National Assembly and an enormous cross on Mount Royal, and the Quebec flag itself is emblazoned with a big cross, and we [as Jews] don’t have any issues with any of these, as they are part of our cultural heritage as a province.”

In a Holocaust Memorial Day release, Prime Minister Harper said the following: "The hatred and bigotry that led to the Holocaust still lurks in our world. Anti-Semitic crimes in Canada, including recent vandalism at Jewish schools in Calgary, Montreal and Toronto, demonstrate the continuing need for both action and education. They remind us of the necessity of standing firm and taking decisive action against the evils of anti-Semitism. Our Government is doing both while taking steps to ensure that the lessons of the Holocaust are remembered."

Still, this brings to bear many questions, particularly for Jews living in Quebec.

Says Atlas, “If we as Jews are going to be asked to be less practicing of our religion because we live in Quebec, then we have to turn around and look at the majority population and see if there’s a double standard being applied.”