Justice Committee on May 9th, 2024

[Julie Dabrusin, Liberal, Toronto—Danforth, ON]

I have under 30 seconds. I'm going to ask people to put in written submissions, if you can, about how to better include Jewish voices in DEI policies, but if I can, I'll ask you quickly, Nati, because you had your hand up—I don't know if you might be able to speak to it—about also including safe spaces intersectionally when we're looking at DEI policies and if you might have something to add on that.

[Nati Pressmann]

I'm a queer Jew. My funding at my university goes to an initiative for queer people to feel safe. That same club posts images supporting October 7. I don't feel safe in queer spaces, and I should be feeling safe in those spaces. Our funding—my funding, my student funds—should go to those spaces to make sure I feel safe in them, because I can't take away one part of my identity. It's all my identity. I'm this one person, and I can't check it at the door, because it's who I am.

[The Chair, Liberal, Lena Metlege Diab]

Thank you for that.

Looking at the time, I can go to three minutes each for each of the four parties. I need about three minutes for committee business as well.

I'm going to ask Ms. Gladu to start.

[Marilyn Gladu, Conservative, Sarnia—Lambton, ON]

Very good.

The federal government has a responsibility to put the Criminal Code in place to set the law and to ensure it's enforced. In the Criminal Code, it's an offence to advocate or promote genocide; to publicly incite hatred in a way that's “likely to lead to a breach of the peace”; to “wilfully promote..hatred against [an] identifiable group”; to “wilfully promote...antisemitism”; or to commit mischief related to certain forms of property that's “motivated by bias, prejudice or hate”.

Yet, all of these things are happening across the country. We have heard from your testimony about the things that are happening on campus. We could add to that the blocking at Avenue Road of critical infrastructure, which is also illegal. We could add the blocking of the road in front of Mount Sinai Hospital, which was also illegal.

In all of these cases, we do not see universities enforcing their code of conduct, we do not see the police arresting people for committing what are crimes and, also, the federal government has not taken an action to ensure the rule of law is enforced.

Do you agree with my assessment?

I'll start with Rachel.

[Rachel Cook]

I'm a big fan of equality, I guess, as the university would put it. If it is a secular and apolitical space where there cannot be Christmas trees and there cannot be menorahs, then there should be no minority flags of any type. It should be a strictly secular space.

[Marilyn Gladu, Conservative, Sarnia—Lambton, ON]

Michael.

[Michael Eshayek]

Yes, I agree with you.

Graham Carr, the president of the university, has set up a task force to address systemic discrimination, identity-based violence and hate on campus and beyond. On the surface, this is a positive initiative, but one of the three co-chairs appointed is a supporter of BDS. She's against the IHRA definition of anti-Semitism, and she's an anti-Zionist. I think that says everything.

[Marilyn Gladu, Conservative, Sarnia—Lambton, ON]

Okay.

Nati.

[Nati Pressmann]

I think all laws should be enforced to protect Jewish people. I also think we need to be speaking to our universities to ensure that they're upholding their own codes of conduct.

[Marilyn Gladu, Conservative, Sarnia—Lambton, ON]

Mr. Oberman.

[Neil G. Oberman]

The rule of law doesn't apply only to Jews. It applies to all citizens of Canada. When you don't follow the rule of law, you create a vacuum for the haters. My recommendation is that before you create new laws, enforce the laws that are there and educate the police and the people who enforce those laws.

As an example, on March 5, when I had an injunction, the first thing the police said to me was, "I don't understand. What do you want?"

It's education, education, education. Remember what I said. Ignorance is not bliss, and education is the solution.

More laws create more ambiguity before you enforce the current laws.

[Marilyn Gladu, Conservative, Sarnia—Lambton, ON]

All right. What would you suggest the federal government do to ensure that the enforcement of the rule of law is applied equally to all Canadians?

I'll start with Mr. Tarshish.

[The Chair, Liberal, Lena Metlege Diab]

Ms. Gladu, that's it.

[Marilyn Gladu, Conservative, Sarnia—Lambton, ON]

That was it. Okay.

You can submit your answers then.

[The Chair, Liberal, Lena Metlege Diab]

Yes.

We'll go to Mr. Housefather, please.

[Anthony Housefather, Liberal, Mount Royal, QC]

The Parliament of Canada makes the Criminal Code. Enforcement is provincial, not federal.

Today, a lot of things have been blamed on the federal government, when post-secondary institutions are the jurisdiction of the provinces, and college administrators are largely responsible for what happens. Despite that, there seems to be an attempt by one party to pretend that the federal government is responsible for everything.

Again, I want to come back to your experiences on campus. One of the things I've heard a lot from many sources is that these demonstrations are not at all anti-Semitic, and it's a tiny group of people at these demonstrations who are anti-Semitic. I think you've all said you don't agree with that.

We're going to have the opportunity to call university presidents to this committee, if we would like to do that, and I think we should. What universities' presidents should we call?

Ms. Pressmann, you have a national organization. Could you give us some examples of whom we should call?

[Nati Pressmann]

I would say all of them, but to be realistic, OCAD University in Toronto is one to talk to, as well as TMU. I would also include Emily Carr University in B.C.

Those are my top three, I would say.

[Anthony Housefather, Liberal, Mount Royal, QC]

Mr. Tarshish, do you have a national organization?

[Yos Tarshish]

I have a national organization, but I don't necessarily know whether.... I've been in Canada for six years. I know the university presidents on my campus. I don't know whether I'm....

[Anthony Housefather, Liberal, Mount Royal, QC]

I understand.

Ms. Cook, should we call the president of the University of Alberta?

[Rachel Cook]

Absolutely.

[Anthony Housefather, Liberal, Mount Royal, QC]

Mr. Eshayek, should we call the president of Concordia?

[Michael Eshayek]

Yes. Graham Carr should be the first one here.

We can look back at Concordia University. In 2002, there was the Bibi Netanyahu riot. We can see there was BDS in 2014. In 2021, Nikki was attacked, as well as in 2023 and now.

Therefore, Graham Carr should be here.

[Anthony Housefather, Liberal, Mount Royal, QC]

Ms. Nashen, should we call Deep Saini at McGill?

[Nicole Nashen]

Yes. I've received emails from the McGill administration for the past seven months with empty words, and I'd like to know why those words are empty and why they're not implemented with action.