Mr. Chair, I want to thank the member for Laurier—Sainte-Marie for her remarks.
I jotted down a quote earlier today, one that has affected me for a long period of time:
New Democrats have long believed that so long as any among us are unfree, all of us are unfree. So long as any among us are persecuted, so we all are persecuted.
Earlier, my friend from Ancaster—Dundas—Flamborough—Westdale was talking about McMaster University. In Hamilton, people will know that following 9/11 there was a firebombing of the Hindu samaj. The racists thought it was a mosque. The member also mentioned Israeli Apartheid Week. As well, there was an event where one of the professors wore an niqab, which caused a problem.
I think it is really important to look at the Shoa, or just before the Shoa, and at what happened to Jews in Germany. They lost their voice. They lost their opportunity to be themselves and to present their case on whatever kind of an issue that was happening.
Therefore, when we have Israeli Apartheid Week, I agree that we have to engage and have to try to change the direction. Be it on the issue of a niqab, or whatever anti-racism work that we can do, we have to engage.
It does not work and has not worked to go from the top down, saying that we have an edict and that this is how we must act. We have to protect people's freedom of voice so they can deliver the message needed to change history.
Anti-Semitism has the longest history, and many speakers tonight have said this. For century upon century, the Jewish people have been the victims of anti-Semitism. We have to protect the voice of our communities to fight that.