Earlier this week, the London, ON School Board (TVDSB) issued new “Guidelines for student dress.”  In the FAQ of these guidelines, a “Free Palestine” t-shirt was used as an example of school dress which would “promote or incite… violence.”  While the School Board quietly removed this example after complaints, we believe that the School Board must apologize to its students and to the Palestinian-Canadian community.  This incident was an act of pure anti-Palestinian racism; “Free Palestine” is a call for freedom and equality, not a call to violence! Use the fields below to send an email to members of the London, ON School Board telling them to apologize for this act of anti-Palestinian racism.

Like many Canadians, CJPME was encouraged to see NDP leader Jagmeet Singh’s recent call for a more principled Canadian policy in support of Palestinian human rights. Singh’s call outlined 13 excellent policy demands, all of which are consistent with international law and the priorities of civil society. Singh is getting a lot of heat from pro-apartheid groups for his statement, so CJPME wrote a letter thanking him for his statement, and asking him to follow through on his demands. Can you join us? Continue reading

Israel has launched yet another aggressive war against the people of Gaza, deploying airstrikes against residential buildings in civilian neighbourhoods. Scores of people have been killed, including at least 15 children. Shockingly, Israel continues to commit these war crimes with impunity. Not only has Canada failed to condemn Israeli aggression, but Canadian military exports to Israel continue to increase every year. Canada must condemn Israel's attacks on the people of Gaza, and suspend military trade with Israel! Continue reading

We are all grieving after Israel's assassination of Al Jazeera journalist Shireen Abu Akleh. Yet Abu Akleh is already the 47th journalist killed by Israel since 2000, and Reporters Without Borders has said that at least 144 Palestinian journalists have been violently targeted by Israeli forces during protests since 2018. Labelled an apartheid state by all the major human rights organizations, Israel systematically targets journalists to hide its crimes. Canada must condemn this killing, and demand an independent international inquiry into the killing of Abu Akleh. Continue reading

If you're like us, you were shocked and angered by the videos of Israeli soldiers raiding the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound in Jerusalem over the weekend.  Israeli soldiers threw teargas and stun grenades as they entered the compound and mosque, assaulting hundreds – including women, parents with children, media, and medics.  On Friday, Canada issued a weak statement about "de-escalation" of the "violence in and around Al-Aqsa" with NO DISTINCTION between the violent Israeli soldiers and the Palestinian victims. Continue reading

As revealed in CJPME's "Arming Apartheid" analysis, Canada is selling almost $20 million in arms to Israel each year – its highest level in 30 years! At the same time, Israeli forces continue to violently raid Al-Aqsa and across occupied Palestine, and human rights organizations – including Amnesty International – have all recently concluded that Israel imposes an apartheid regime against Palestinians! Continue reading

In a major victory, students at McGill just voted 71% in a referendum to adopt a Palestine Solidarity Policy and boycott companies complicit in Israeli apartheid. Now, McGill is threatening to withhold the student union’s membership fees to force students to abandon the policy. This is a heavy-handed attack on student democracy and undermines the right to protest Israel’s system of racial discrimination! Continue reading

A major new report by Amnesty International concludes that Israel is perpetuating a system of Apartheid against the Palestinian people! Amnesty determined that Israel operates a regime of oppression and domination, amounting to Apartheid, whose victims include Palestinians under military occupation, Palestinian citizens within Israel, and even Palestinian refugees in exile. Continue reading

Last week, hundreds of students in Toronto held an amazing walk-out to protest anti-Palestinian racism in their schools. The students called for a "Free Palestine" and used a popular chant that expresses hope for freedom from oppression: "From the River to the Sea, Palestine will be Free." (Read their press release and demands here). Shockingly, these courageous and inspiring students are now being viciously attacked by pro-Israel groups, who are falsely accusing them of using "genocidal" slogans. This unacceptable bullying campaign, which aims to smear the anti-racist activism of high school students, must be immediately challenged by the TDSB. Click here to support TDSB students calling for a Free Palestine! Continue reading

Human rights defenders in Palestine are under attack! In October, the Israeli government falsely designated six leading Palestinian NGOs as “terrorist” groups, in a clear attempt to outlaw them and shut down their human rights work. This puts the work and safety of human rights defenders in danger and makes it more difficult to hold Israel to account for its human rights abuses. While the world has condemned this egregious attack on Palestinian civil society, Canadian officials have been silent. Help us make sure that every one of Canada’s ministers knows we expect more! Click here to demand the Canadian Government take action now! Continue reading