Letter from Canadian Justice Force, Toronto, to Toronto Chief of Police, Police Services Board and Provincial government re ongoing targeting of Jewish community by Sunday anti Israel protesters

Dear Chief Demkiw, Members of the Toronto Police Services Board, and Government Officials,

I am writing to express my concern and outrage regarding the ongoing, targeted demonstrations by pro-Hamas activists at Bathurst and Sheppard, right in the heart of one of Toronto’s largest Jewish neighbourhoods.

It is one thing that these inflammatory and inciting counter-protests were tolerated over the past two years while the weekly hostage rallies were taking place. But now that the hostage gatherings have stopped, it is unfathomable that these agitators are still being allowed to target this intersection. With full knowledge that no rally was planned this past weekend, they came anyway, deliberately targeting a Jewish neighbourhood.

This is not free expression; this is harassment, intimidation, and an ongoing campaign to provoke and incite members of the Jewish community. This is targeted hate.

At their most recent gathering, one protester held a sign reading: “Even this corner was not promised to them 3000 years ago.” This is unmistakably a message of vilification directed at Jews, denying Jewish belonging anywhere, even on a Toronto street corner. This is not a political statement; it is incitement.

The group continues to advertise on social media that they will keep returning to this corner, stating that they will be there Sunday Nov 2nd, explicitly identifying the Jewish community as their target. But why wouldn’t they? The Toronto Police have done next to nothing to stop this blatant harassment.

The Criminal Code of Canada provides clear grounds for intervention:

• Section 63 defines an unlawful assembly as a gathering that causes fear of a disturbance of the peace through a common purpose—exactly what is occurring here.

• Section 319 prohibits the wilful promotion of hatred and the public incitement of hatred against an identifiable group—conduct repeatedly demonstrated at these rallies.

• Section 175 prohibits causing a disturbance in a public place through disorderly conduct.

Each of these sections applies directly to what has been unfolding for months, yet no enforcement action appears to have been taken. The inaction of the Toronto Police Service has effectively normalized this harassment and emboldened those who seek to intimidate Jews in our own neighbourhoods.

How much longer can this be allowed to go on? Must Jewish blood be spilled on the streets of Toronto before you are willing to act?

The Jewish community deserves the same protection under the law as any other. Allowing these targeted, hate-filled demonstrations to persist at Bathurst and Sheppard is not neutrality, it is complicity. The continued failure to uphold the Criminal Code and to protect Jewish residents sends a clear and dangerous message: that Jews are not worth protecting.

This situation is unacceptable. I urge the Toronto Police Service and the Police Board to immediately enforce the laws already on the books, to prevent further harassment, and to restore the sense of safety and dignity that every Canadian citizen deserves.

Sincerely,

Canadian Justice Force