Montreal, Antisemitism, And Speaking Truth

On The Riots In Montreal

Let’s speak clearly about what happened in Montreal last night, and about what didn’t. What happened last night was a disgrace, as a nominally anti-NATO protest became - or always was intended to be, either way - an anti-Semitic rally. Use of the “Final Solution” language, caught on video, makes clear that this was not just about being anti-Israel, a distinction that is wide enough to drive the Décarie through. This was about scaring Montreal’s not-inconsiderable Jewish population.

That that was their purpose is, of course, obscene, and it shouldn’t be difficult to say. The cause of Palestinian rights is shared by many sane, rational people who care about the people of Gaza and the West Bank, but it is also shared by many truly abhorrent people who believe they are superior to the Jewish people on account of their religion. Bigotry in the guise of religious zealotry is no more acceptable against the Jewish people than when people overread scripture in an attempt to justify homophobia. And my Jewish friends, whether in Canada, America, or Britain, are not responsible for the actions of the Israeli government.

Too often, it feels like the progressive left feels like it is hard to make a very basic statement - a war thousands of miles away should not change how we feel about each other. We need to stop being scared of making the self-evident points that plenty of people who nominally agree with us on the need for Palestinian self-determination and a Palestinian state are genuinely bad people and that anti-semitism is a very real concern that cannot be handwaved away by pointing out that others also have it bad. I’m reminded endlessly of the way Jeremy Corbyn would always “condemn” anti-semitism by adding the words “and all other forms of racism” immediately after, as if he couldn’t bring himself to acknowledge the specific pain.

If progressives and liberals want to be taken seriously, we must stand beside our Jewish friends and allies. We must do so because there is no other way forward. A threat to their rights to walk down Dorchester is an affront to me, just as so many of them would view a threat to my right as a gay man to exist in peace as an affront. We must clearly, confidently, and unambiguously condemn antisemitism whenever it appears, and never let anyone believe we will tolerate it as a price worth paying.

But similarly, we must be clear about what actually happened in Montreal last night, and what didn’t. This was not Toronto 2010, or Vancouver 2011. This was a relatively small group of antisemitic pieces of shit who were dealt with. Yes, they did some damage, and it seems reasonable the police should have been more prepared, but Montreal did not burn last night. It was horrifying, and if you are a Jewish Montrealer who doesn’t feel safe in your own city far fucking be it for me to tell you otherwise. But making Canada, or Montreal, out to be something it’s not isn’t helping.

What we face is a very real problem, but this is not a crisis on the scale of 1970. This is much comparable to the end of the pandemic, and yes to the Convoy, than any of the true crises this country has faced. It is obviously true that being an anti-Semite is worse than being anti-vax, let alone vaccine mandate, but in both cases nominally respectable views got hijacked by bigots and radicals. What started as a legitimate expression of anger towards mandates got hijacked by anti-government radicals who wanted to dethrone Trudeau, by bigots who wanted to call various groups (Liberals, the vaccinated, federal workers) various homophobic slurs, and general troublemakers who wanted a semi-serious excuse to desecrate Ottawa.

In the same way, there is a nominally legitimate point at the core of the various protest movements across Canada. Yes, the Israeli government has overreached in their response to October 7th. The terrible tragedy of that day does not justify killing many multiples more children, let alone total civilians. It seems undeniable that the Israelis have not cared in the slightest about Palestinian civilian casualties, and have been at best indifferent to immense human suffering. But that doesn’t fucking justify chanting for a “Final Solution”.

It is notable that certain members of the commentariat who went out of their way to defend the reasonable elements of the Convoy are not extending the same courtesies here. That many also pitch themselves as free speech absolutists who didn’t find the waving of Nazi flags to be a crisis but can suddenly find their moral high ground here is also worth noting. I’m sure the colour of the average Convoy member’s skin has nothing to do with why they were given a deference from many that was completely undeserved.

Justin Trudeau does deserve criticism, but not for going to Taylor Swift. Stephen Harper spent many a night in suburban Ottawa going to Senators games, oftentimes with his son, and nobody cared. It is little different that he spent his Friday night at the Eras Tour. There was nothing he could or should have done that was missed while he was dancing to Shake It Off or pretending to know the words to Anti-Hero. Those trying to suggest he should have left the concert would have been first on the list to shit on him for “performative nonsense” or “woke pandering” if he left the show in a hurry and instantly tweeted a photo of himself on the phone with Valerie Plante or Bill Blair or someone. And they’d have been right.

I don’t think the PM should be left off the hook for not putting out a statement, a stunning failure of staff work that would be more shocking if the PMO’s comms strategy was ever competent. It also should have been stronger, especially from a PM who lives in Outremont when he’s not in Ottawa. But it’s not about him.

This is about our Jewish community feeling safe. This is about protecting a community that needs us. And this is about not blaming them for actions thousands of miles away. It’s about time we stand clear and honest about what happened, and what didn’t. Montreal didn’t burn, antisemites didn’t win, and we are not going to abandon our Jewish community. We mustn’t allow that.