📄 Download the Full Q1 2025 Report (PDF)

A short message from our Acting President, Michael Bueckert:

Dear Supporters, 

I want to personally thank you for your unwavering support of our mission to advocate for Palestinian human rights and support for international law. Your generosity makes all the difference in our ability to challenge injustice, expose misinformation, and hold those in power accountable. 

As you know, advocating on the issue of Palestine is not easy. Although support for the Palestinian struggle continues to grow among Canadians, many of our most important institutions, from legislatures to news media to universities, do not reflect public opinion on this issue. Instead, too many of those in power continue to defend Israel’s war crimes, suppress voices for human rights, and shut down honest discussion about Canadian foreign policy. But thanks to you, we continue to push forward. 

This work would not be possible without your commitment. Your belief in our cause empowers us to keep speaking truth to power, influencing public opinion, and challenging Canada’s complicity in apartheid and genocide. 

But our journey is far from over. With a federal election underway in Canada, and with Israel abandoning the ceasefire deal and escalating its genocidal attacks on Gaza, it is clear that the challenges we face are graver than ever. With your continued support, we can face the challenges ahead and keep pushing our political leaders and institutions to take a principled approach to the Middle East and hold those accountable for violating international law. 

Thank you for being part of this movement. Together, we are making change happen. 

With deepest gratitude, 

Michael Bueckert

Acting President, CJPME

Who We Are & Why Your Support Matters:

Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East (CJPME) is a national advocacy organization dedicated to promoting human rights, justice, and international law in the Middle East and Canada. Founded in 2004, CJPME works to shift the national conversation in support of Palestinian human rights by engaging in courageous advocacy, groundbreaking research, and grassroots campaigns.  

As the main registered lobby group that advocates for Palestinian human rights in Canada, CJPME raised $850,000 last year thanks to the generosity of our donors. To build on this momentum and expand our impact, we rely on dedicated supporters like you. With a dedicated team of nine full-time staff, CJPME stands as the largest and longest-running human rights organization dedicated to this cause.

What We Achieved Together in this Quarter:

Thanks to your unwavering support, this quarter we’ve made significant strides in advancing the Palestinian cause. From pushing for an arms embargo to kickstarting a federal election campaign that keeps Palestine at the forefront, your contributions are driving real impact! 

Advocating for an Arms Embargo on Israel: 

In press statements and media interviews, CJPME has continued to call on the Canadian government to immediately halt arms transfers to Israel, including cutting ties with the F-35 fighter jet program. Our resources highlighted how Canadian-made components contribute to Israel’s bombing campaigns and urged the government to close loopholes that allow these weapons to reach Israel via the United States. We also raised the alarm about Canada’s contract to supply the Israeli military with artillery propellants via the U.S and joined a letter from 230+ organizations globally in demanding an end to F-35 transfers to Israel, emphasizing Canada’s legal obligation to prevent its exports from contributing to war crimes.

Major Victories for Media Accountability: 

CJPME’s Media Accountability Project (MAP) achieved a significant victory when the National NewsMedia Council (NNC) ruled that the Toronto Sun had published inaccurate and misleading claims about pro-Palestinian protests. This ruling was the result of CJPME’s official complaint to the NNC, which exposed how the Sun falsely smeared peaceful demonstrators as “terror supporters” and “the equivalent of Nazis.” The NNC’s ruling confirmed that the Sun had violated journalistic standards, reinforcing the need for fair and accurate reporting on Palestine.

Some of the other recent successes of our media accountability team include:  

• Holding The Globe and Mail accountable: CJPME secured a correction from The Globe and Mail after it published a misleading headline that failed to attribute responsibility to Israel for airstrikes that killed at least 20 Palestinians in Gaza. The correction, issued the following day, marked another victory for journalistic integrity. 
• Pressuring CBC to correct its reporting on genocide: CJPME successfully pressured CBC to issue a formal correction after an anchor dismissed the term "genocide" during an interview with a Palestinian-Canadian woman mourning her brother’s death in Gaza. This intervention led CBC to clarify that their reporting should reflect the public debate around such terms. Rebel News acknowledged our win, framing it as a response to “anti-Israel pressure,” but in doing so, highlighted the effectiveness of CJPME's advocacy in holding media organizations accountable for their coverage of Palestinian narratives.
• Mobilizing supporters against anti-Palestinian rhetoric: CJPME mobilized supporters to challenge anti-Palestinian rhetoric on 640 Toronto’s radio station. Over 100 emails were sent in response to host Alex Pierson’s dehumanizing comments, where she referred to Palestinians as "terrorists" and claimed they were not "good people." This collective action underscored CJPME’s commitment to holding media outlets accountable and fostering a more accurate discourse on Palestine.
• Challenging misinformation in the Toronto Star: On two separate occasions in March, CJPME successfully pushed the Toronto Star to correct false claims about the Palestinian and Israeli death tolls. In both cases, the Star had inflated the Israeli death toll while downplaying the Palestinian casualties in Gaza. CJPME also challenged misleading framing of the October 7 attack as targeting a music festival and the failure to acknowledge that Palestinian casualties are likely a significant undercount.
• Highlighting media bias in Spheres of Influence: CJPME media analyst Lynn Naji was featured in Spheres of Influence in an article titled "Exposing the Narrative: The Fight for Fair Reporting on Palestine." The piece explores common patterns of bias in Canadian media coverage of Palestine and the role of public pressure in shifting narratives.
• Providing media advocacy tools for journalists: CJPME media analyst Anthony Issa published Your Definitive Palestine Media Toolkit in The Link, an independent paper at Concordia University. Drawing from his experience as a former editor, Anthony outlined key biases in Canadian media’s coverage of Palestine, including the exclusion of Palestinian voices, misleading language that obscures Israeli state violence, and the erasure of historical and legal contexts. This toolkit serves as a critical resource for young journalists and grassroots advocates working to hold media accountable.

Holding Canada’s New Leadership Accountable:

When Justin Trudeau resigned as Prime Minister, triggering a leadership race for the Liberal Party of Canada, CJPME published its Guide to the Liberal Leadership Candidates, ranking each of the candidates based on their track record on Palestinian human rights. Given the Liberal Party’s longstanding support for Israel under Trudeau, this guide aimed to help inform voters about which leadership candidates are most likely to adopt a principled, human-rights-based foreign policy. The guide awarded eventual winner Mark Carney with a disappointing “D+”, setting the stage for understanding the possible challenges ahead under his leadership.

Following the leadership race, CJPME issued a strong statement urging Carney to shift away from Trudeau’s pro-Israel policies and instead uphold international law regarding Palestine. We emphasized that Carney has an opportunity to take immediate steps to end Canada’s complicity in Israeli atrocities. However, his appointment of Marco Mendicino—a staunchly pro-Israel politician—as Chief of Staff raises serious concerns. CJPME launched an email campaign urging Carney and MPs to remove Mendicino from this influential position, with more than 8611 emails sent so far!

Fighting Censorship in Education: 

CJPME called for the immediate resignation of Quebec’s Minister of Higher Education, Pascale Déry, for her repeated political interference in academic freedom. Déry has attempted to suppress discussions on Palestine at Vanier and Dawson Colleges, launching a politically motivated “investigation” targeting Palestinian literature and preventing discussion of the Nakba. CJPME condemned these attacks on academic expression and was quoted in the media defending the right of students and educators to engage in open discourse on Palestine.

Defending Palestinian Solidarity in Ontario: 

CJPME exposed Ontario’s “Hate Crimes Working Group” (HCWG) as a tool to suppress Palestinian activism. Under its direction, Ontario police have cracked down on peaceful protests, imposing harsh bail conditions on arrested activists. CJPME led a joint letter with 60+ organizations calling on Premier Doug Ford to stop persecuting Palestinian human rights defenders. We also launched a campaign against Ontario’s anti-Palestine persecution, with over than 5,500 protest emails sent.

Supporting Student-Led BDS Efforts: 

CJPME celebrated a major victory for the Palestinian solidarity movement as Concordia University students overwhelmingly voted in favor of two motions supporting the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) movement. However, rather than respecting this democratic decision, Concordia University issued a statement full of misinformation about BDS and unfairly discredited student activists. CJPME sent a formal letter to the university president, defending students’ rights to advocate for Palestinian human rights and urging the administration to implement their demands.

Media & Public Advocacy:

This quarter, CJPME’s advocacy was widely featured in Canadian media, including CBC Toronto, CTV National News, the Montreal Gazette, and the Canadian Press. Our leaders have challenged media bias, defended Palestinian rights, and countered misinformation about Gaza. In particular, Acting President Michael Bueckert was interviewed about Trump’s genocidal threats against Palestinians, while Media Advocacy Director Jason Toney was quoted defending student activism at Concordia.

CJPME also expanded its public engagement through high-profile academic and community discussions, including a featured panel at the Progressive Publics Symposium in Montreal and a panel discussion at McGill University. Through these events, our team played a key role in exposing anti-Palestinian media bias, challenging racism, and advocating for more accurate and just coverage of Palestine in Canada.

What’s Next?

CJPME will continue its advocacy for Palestinian human rights, focusing on key campaigns, initiatives, and reports, including:  

• Mobilizing for the Federal Election: Keeping Palestine on the Ballot

With Canada’s federal election underway, CJPME is launching a major election advocacy campaign to ensure that Palestinian rights remain a central issue. Our third-party advertising campaign will inform and mobilize voters, pressure candidates to take a stand on Palestine, and challenge political parties to adopt principled foreign policies. Given the urgency of this election, we are expanding our efforts beyond our usual budget. Thanks to generous supporters, we have already raised around $48,000 toward this campaign—but we need continued support to maximize our impact. This initiative will include targeted ads, voter education materials, and advocacy tools to ensure that Palestine is at the forefront during the election.

• Disarming Israel

We will continue to be a leading committee member of the national Arms Embargo Now campaign and participate in global campaign initiatives, such as the recent global campaign launch against the F-35 Supply Chain. This effort will include campaigning for a private member’s bill to close the legal loophole that allows arms companies to ship weapons to Israel through the US. We will also continue to campaign for Canada to use its sanctions legislation to end its relationship with the Israeli military-industrial complex.

• Accountability for Gaza Genocide

CJPME will continue supporting and amplifying multiple campaigns demanding accountability from the Canadian government, including three legal cases addressing its complicity in genocide, arms transfers to Israel, and the failed Gaza Visa Program. Additionally, we will continue mobilizing efforts to bar Israeli soldiers who served in Gaza from entering Canada and/or face legal action.

Why Your Support Matters:

CJPME is 100% funded by individuals like you—no government grants, no corporate influence. Every dollar you give helps us:

• Challenge misinformation and expose the “Palestine exception” in Canadian politics and media.
• Engage policymakers to push for human-based policies.
• Mobilize grassroots activism through community-driven campaigns and education.
• Produce impactful research to inform decision-makers, activists, and the public.
• Amplify critical voices via the Palestine Debrief podcast, speaking tours, and expert panels.
• Strengthen our reach with cutting-edge media and advocacy tools.

Ways to Give:

• One-Time Donation: Fuel our advocacy and public awareness efforts with a single contribution. Donate here.
• Monthly Donation: Help sustain our long-term initiatives with reliable support. Sign up here.
• Direct Bank Deposit: Contact our Senior Director of Development at [email protected] for details.

Contact Information & Social Media Handles:

• Get in Touch:

     Email: General inquiries: [email protected] | Donations: [email protected]

     Phone: (438) 380-5419

     Website: www.cjpme.org  

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📄 Download the Full Q1 2025 Report (PDF)