On October 6, 2026, CJPME issued a letter to University of Toronto President Woodin urging the administration not to ban a student-led vigil for Palestinians killed during three years of Israel's genocide. Click here to download the letter as a PDF.

Dear President Woodin,

I am writing on behalf of Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East (CJPME) to express concerns over the mistreatment of a pro-Palestine vigil planned for October 7, 2026. The student-led event titled “Honouring our Martyrs” will commemorate three years since the start of Israel’s genocide in Gaza. I am aware that the student-led event is facing defamatory claims and gross mischaracterization by pro-Israel advocates, who are asking your administration to shut down the event. These arguments are based on false and unfair narratives which rely on an ignorance of the Arabic language and the devaluation of Palestinian life.

Notably, the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs (CIJA) has falsely argued that the timing and language of the event (“Honouring Our Martyrs”) amount to “glorifying the heinous attacks [by Hamas]” and “honouring the terrorists as ‘martyrs.’” They argue that a pro-Palestine vigil held on October 7 can only be understood as celebrating the atrocities committed against Israeli civilians that day, while falsely conflating the loaded term “terrorism” with “martyr.”

CIJA’s argument rests on a deliberate misrepresentation of the term “martyr.” Israel’s supporters insist that the word is synonymous with terrorism. However, it is a translation of a common Arabic word (شَهِيد - “shaheed”) which derives from the same linguistic root as “shahada,” meaning “to witness” or “to testify.” This root reflects the concept of bearing witness to one’s faith and conviction, even at the cost of sacrificing one’s life. While in Western languages, “martyr” usually refers to someone who dies because of their religious beliefs, Palestinians use the label “martyr” to refer to anyone killed by the Israeli military, whether combatants, civilians or children. Martyrdom in Islam is not limited to those who die in the battlefield; the concept is broader and encompasses sacrifices made in the name of justice and righteousness.

By arguing that phrases such as “honouring our martyrs” mean “honouring the terrorists,” CIJA is unfairly portraying and defaming students who want to commemorate the tens of thousands of people killed in Gaza as “pro-terror.” CIJA is relying on a deliberate mistranslation of Arabic to defame supporters of Palestinian human rights. This is completely unacceptable.

Similarly, the argument that students who hold a pro-Palestine event on October 7 are supporting acts of violence against civilians is false and unfair. October 7 not only marks the Hamas attacks on Israel, but it also marks the 3-year mark since the start of Israel’s ongoing genocide in Gaza, in which more than 74,000 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces. Israel’s bombing campaign on Gaza started on October 7, almost immediately after the Hamas attack, and Israeli officials were already making genocidal remarks on that day. For example, Israeli minister May Golan said on October 7 that “All of Gaza’s infrastructures must be destroyed to its foundation and their electricity cut off immediately. The war is not against Hamas but against the state of Gaza.” Nissim Vaturi, deputy speaker of the Israeli parliament, similarly wrote on that day: “Now we all have one common goal – erasing the Gaza Strip from the face of the Earth.”

It is therefore entirely legitimate and logical for Palestinians and other Canadians of conscience to commemorate and mourn three years of genocide on October 7. This right to mourn extends to students at the University of Toronto, many of whom have family in occupied Gaza, or who simply want to mourn the hundreds of thousands of Palestinians killed by Israel, including health care workers, journalists, women, men, and children. 

We are also aware that these defamatory claims against students have been promoted by representatives of the Israeli government in Canada, which also monitors student protest activity. These attacks on students by the Israeli state, which are aimed at restricting the expression of civil liberties in Canada, should be condemned as acts of foreign influence and transnational repression.

For the above reasons, it has been distressing to see your administration’s response to these defamatory and censorious attacks against your own students. As reported by the National Post, a university representative said that the event “cannot proceed because of significant safety and operational concerns.” This gives the impression that the university is endorsing the false claims that mourning Palestinian life is equivalent to promoting terror. 

We urge you to allow the event to go ahead as planned and not intervene. Instead, we request that you acknowledge the right of students to mourn those killed in Palestine, and condemn the gross and defamatory attacks on students at your university by the Israeli state and its supporters.

Sincerely,

Michael Bueckert, PhD

Vice President

Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East