On Friday, however, the Canadian government announced that it has created a National Forum on Combating Antisemitism, which will be held in Ottawa in February 2025

“The Government of Canada recognizes the urgent need for national leadership to ensure Jewish Canadians feel safe in their synagogues, schools, and communities,” a statement read.

Deborah Lyons, Canada’s special envoy on preserving Holocaust remembrance and combating antisemitism, welcomed the forum, saying, “Jews are the number one target of reported hate crimes in Canada despite making up just over 1% of the population.

Antisemitism shouldn’t be a partisan issue.”

How Canada responds and deals with the scourge of antisemitism will have far-reaching implications for Jews in the rest of the Diaspora. If Jews aren’t safe in Canada, they won’t be safe anywhere.

Let’s hope that the platitudes of protecting the Jewish community will translate into concrete action that demonstrates there will be zero tolerance for targeting anyone solely because they’re Jewish.