“Day of Rage” Replaces Al Quds Day As Premier Anti-Israel, Jew-Hate Fest In Toronto

The US rallies are organized by al Awda, which supports BDS, equates Judaism with Nazism and calls for the abolition of  the Jewish state.

“Al-Awda and other hate groups that organized these rallies are dedicated to ending Israel’s existence and promoting antisemitic propaganda,” said Roz Rothstein, CEO of StandWithUs. “While there is nothing wrong with having an open and vigorous debate about Israeli policies, that is not what these events are really about. We are answering hate with a message highlighting the urgent need for Palestinian leaders to choose peace negotiations over hatred and violence.”

In 6 US cities StandWithUs worked with the Iranian American Jewish Federation (IAJF) to counter the pro-Palestinian vitriol at street level. However, there was no organized effort by Jewish institutions in Canada to present any kind of response to the demonization of Israel and Zionists. TheJ.ca was unable to locate a single statement to the media – made by Jewish leadership – to address the fears of the Jews of Toronto, already the most antisemitic city in Canada, that the protests were fanning the flames. Not even the most basic line in the sand, that blaming Jews outside of Israel for what the Netanyahu government does is an antisemitic attack as defined by the IHRA, was drawn.

Increasingly the narrative at the protests focused not only on the question of the legal status of applying Israeli law to the disputed areas, but to linking Israel to police practices that led to the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis, and more generally the support of democratic nations for the Jewish state to have secure borders.