CJPME's Debrief Podcast

Muslim Awareness Week (MAW) is a yearly week of solidarity and exchange where people are invited to learn about the achievements, contributions, aspirations and concerns of Quebecers of Muslim faith.  This year’s MAW marks the five-year anniversary of the tragic shooting on January 29, 2017 in a Quebec City mosque which left six Muslim-Canadians dead, and the first commemoration since the federal government reserved January 29 as a national day of remembrance and action against Islamophobia.  Today, long-time Quebec anti-Islamophobia activist Ehab Lotayef joins the conversation as we discuss what has and hasn’t changed in the last five years, and the ongoing need for MAW. If you can, rate us and write a nice review if you like what you hear. It helps other people find our podcast and learn about the issues. Here are the instructions on how to find, rate, review and share the podcast on eight different platforms: Apple, Spotify, Google, TuneIn, Deezer, Stitcher, Pocket Casts, and iHeartRadio. Continue reading

Desmond Tutu dedicated much of his life to the abolition of Apartheid in South Africa, but he was also a consistent campaigner against injustice everywhere, including in Palestine. Following his passing in December, Western leaders celebrated Tutu’s life, but largely ignored this aspect of his legacy.  Rev. Robert Assaly of Canadian Friends of Sabeel joins the conversation today as we talk about Desmond Tutu’s lifetime of solidarity with the Palestinians, and his willingness to talk openly about the glaring parallels between Apartheid in South Africa and Israel’s oppression of the Palestinians. If you can, rate us and write a nice review if you like what you hear. It helps other people find our podcast and learn about the issues. Here are the instructions on how to find, rate, review and share the podcast on eight different platforms: Apple, Spotify, Google, TuneIn, Deezer, Stitcher, Pocket Casts, and iHeartRadio. Continue reading

While Palestinians, solidarity activists, and academics have been accurately describing Israel as an “Apartheid” state for many years, the number of prominent organizations and public figures willing to use this terminology increased dramatically in 2021. Will this trend continue in 2022? And what is Apartheid, anyway?  If you can, rate us and write a nice review if you like what you hear. It helps other people find our podcast and learn about the issues. Here are the instructions on how to find, rate, review and share the podcast on eight different platforms: Apple, Spotify, Google, TuneIn, Deezer, Stitcher, Pocket Casts, and iHeartRadio. Continue reading

2021 was a busy year for people involved in Palestine solidarity work in Canada and around the world. Tom and Michael discuss their picks for the worst and best moments of the past year, from Israel’s war on Gaza, to Canadian politicians calling for sanctions on Israel, and the growing popularity of the “Apartheid” word. If you can, rate us and write a nice review if you like what you hear. It helps other people find our podcast and learn about the issues. Here are the instructions on how to find, rate, review and share the podcast on eight different platforms: Apple, Spotify, Google, TuneIn, Deezer, Stitcher, Pocket Casts, and iHeartRadio. Continue reading

One year ago, Canada announced that it was purchasing a drone from Israeli weapons company Elbit Systems. Since then, more than 12,000 Canadians have spoken out against the contract, but the government has not responded to their concerns. In this episode, Tom and Michael discuss the campaign to Stop the Elbit Drone purchase. Why does Canada want this drone, and how does this purchase contribute to Israel’s oppression of Palestinians? If you can, rate us and write a nice review if you like what you hear. It helps other people find our podcast and learn about the issues. Here are the instructions on how to find, rate, review and share the podcast on eight different platforms: Apple, Spotify, Google, TuneIn, Deezer, Stitcher, Pocket Casts, and iHeartRadio. Continue reading

Why is it so hard to talk about Palestine in federal politics? In this episode, Tom and Michael are joined by former NDP Deputy-Leader Libby Davies, who was a trailblazer in speaking out for Palestinian rights during her 18 years as a member of Parliament. We first ask Davies how, based in Vancouver, she initially developed a concern for Palestinian human rights. We’ll then learn from Davies about what it was like raising the issue of Palestine on Parliament Hill, especially during the Harper era, and how the political landscape has changed over time. If you can, rate us and write a nice review if you like what you hear. It helps other people find our podcast and learn about the issues. Here are the instructions on how to find, rate, review and share the podcast on eight different platforms: Apple, Spotify, Google, TuneIn, Deezer, Stitcher, Pocket Casts, and iHeartRadio. Continue reading

As this year’s round of voting at the United Nations comes to a close, Michael and Tom critique Canada’s voting on resolutions related to Palestinian human rights. They also discuss recent bizarre comments by Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly regarding Canada’s UN voting, funding for Palestine refugees, and Israel’s attacks on human rights defenders in Palestine. Why is Canada so dedicated to protecting Israel from criticism? If you can, rate us and write a nice review if you like what you hear. It helps other people find our podcast and learn about the issues. Here are the instructions on how to find, rate, review and share the podcast on eight different platforms: Apple, Spotify, Google, TuneIn, Deezer, Stitcher, Pocket Casts, and iHeartRadio. Continue reading

In a major win for academic freedom on Palestine last month, the Canadian Association of University Teachers voted unanimously to oppose the IHRA definition of antisemitism and to defend the right to criticize Israel. In this episode, Tom and Michael are joined by Mark Ayyash to learn about how this important vote unfolded.  We’ll also talk about why IHRA is increasingly understood as a threat to anti-racist and decolonial scholarship.  If you can, rate us and write a nice review if you like what you hear. It helps other people find our podcast and learn about the issues. Here are the instructions on how to find, rate, review and share the podcast on eight different platforms: Apple, Spotify, Google, TuneIn, Deezer, Stitcher, Pocket Casts, and iHeartRadio. Continue reading

In this episode, we recap the alarming series of events that occurred after TDSB educator Javier Davila shared anti-oppression resources about Palestinians with other educators in the Toronto school system. The saga began in May of this year, when the conflict between Israel and the Palestinians sparked mass demonstrations in Canada, and ended this week with TDSB trustees voting to reject a report on anti-Palestinian discrimination. Davila sought to help Toronto educators address the contentious issues within their diverse classrooms, but not everyone welcomed an open and transparent discussion. If you can, rate us and write a nice review if you like what you hear. It helps other people find our podcast and learn about the issues. Here are the instructions on how to find, rate, review and share the podcast on eight different platforms: Apple, Spotify, Google, TuneIn, Deezer, Stitcher, Pocket Casts, and iHeartRadio. Continue reading

In this bonus episode, Michael and Tom provide an update to our previous episode on the Green Party and Annamie Paul. Who is interim party leader Amita Kuttner, and where do they stand on Palestinian human rights? And what did we learn from a recent public interview of Annamie Paul’s former senior advisor Noah Zatzman?  Some listeners may remember: Zatzman sparked a Green Party controversy in June when he publicly threatened to defeat Green MPs who spoke up for Palestinian human rights. If you can, rate us and write a nice review if you like what you hear. It helps other people find our podcast and learn about the issues. Here are the instructions on how to find, rate, review and share the podcast on eight different platforms: Apple, Spotify, Google, TuneIn, Deezer, Stitcher, Pocket Casts, and iHeartRadio. Continue reading