Screenshot of the Jan. 30 B\u2019nai Brith Canada panel discussion during which Selina Robinson spoke her controversial words.<\/i><\/p>\n
Selina Robinson, who has called herself \u201cthe Jew in the crew\u201d that is British Columbia\u2019s cabinet, is out. The minister of advanced education and future skills resigned Monday after a torrent of protest following comments she made last week during a B\u2019nai Brith Canada online panel discussion, in which she referred to the area that would become Israel as \u201ca crappy piece of land.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Premier David Eby announced Robinson\u2019s departure from cabinet, saying her comments were \u201cbelittling and demeaning.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThe depth of work she needs to do is substantial,\u201d said Eby. \u201cWhat has become apparent is the scope of work, the depth of the hurt. As a result, we came to the conclusion together \u2013 she needed to step back.\u201d<\/p>\n The announcement came after protesters threatened to disrupt New Democratic Party events, forcing the cancelation of a major fundraising gala Sunday night and a government news conference Monday. A network of Muslim societies issued a statement over the weekend that no NDP MLAs or candidates would be permitted in their sacred spaces until Robinson was removed from cabinet.<\/p>\n Robinson will not run for reelection as member of the Legislative Assembly for Coquitlam-Maillardville, a decision she says she made earlier.<\/p>\n Response from Jewish community leaders was fast and critical.<\/p>\n \u201cThe removal of MLA Robinson, who apologized for her comments and promised to do better, sends a chilling message that Jewish leaders are held to a different standard than non-Jewish ones,\u201d said Nico Slobinsky, Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs\u2019 vice-president for the Pacific region, in a statement. \u201cIn the past, when BC NDP politicians and staff have made antisemitic comments, the Jewish community has been asked to accept their apologies and \u2013 on every occasion \u2013 we have. As a show of goodwill, we never publicly demanded their resignations and, instead, placed our trust and faith in the premier and the BC government when he said that his team would learn from the incidents and not repeat their egregious errors.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen, on International Holocaust Remembrance Day \u2013 a day to commemorate the six million Jews slaughtered in the Second World War \u2013 one of Premier Eby\u2019s staff tweeted that \u2018we stand with the Muslim community,\u2019 we were asked to accept that stunning gaffe as a mistake. And we did.<\/p>\n \u201cWe were also asked to work with a Parliamentary Secretary for Anti-Racism Initiatives who made remarks that were deeply hurtful to our community,\u201d Slobinsky said. \u201cAnd, despite her repeated offensive actions, she continues to remain in her role.\u201d<\/p>\n This reference to Vancouver-Kensington MLA Mable Elmore alludes to a history of problematic remarks, from claiming before her election that her union was dominated by \u201cZionist bus drivers\u201d to more recently using a speech in the legislature ostensibly about transgender rights to call for Israel to end the war with Hamas.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Slobinsky added: \u201cToday, as the Jewish community in BC is confronted by an alarming increase in antisemitism and by frequent pro-Hamas protests calling for the Jews of Israel to be eradicated, the loss of MLA Robinson is especially distressing, as we no longer have our strongest advocate \u2013 who understands the challenges and sensitivities of the Jewish community \u2013 at the table.<\/p>\n \u201cThe community is both offended and hurt by what has happened to a great ally and British Columbian, and it has seriously undermined the confidence of the Jewish community in the Government of British Columbia. Given this obvious double standard and loss of Jewish representation in cabinet, Premier David Eby must share what steps he is going to take to repair the relationship and restore the community\u2019s trust in him and his government.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cFacing an unprecedented increase in hate, the Jewish community in BC is hurting,\u201d Ezra Shanken, chief executive officer of the Jewish Federation of Greater Vancouver, said in a statement. \u201cThe level of online vitriol aimed at Selina Robinson leading up to her resignation \u2013 which mirrors the reality faced by much of the Jewish community since the Oct. 7 terrorist attacks committed by Hamas \u2013 shows worrying trends in our public discourse. We are saddened to have lost one of the strongest advocates fighting against antisemitism from within cabinet \u2013 especially at a time when it is needed most.<\/p>\n \u201cIt is shameful that Premier David Eby has bowed to pressure from a loud minority whose campaign to discredit MLA Robinson was centred in anti-Jewish bias and lacked the offer of grace they demand when others falter.<\/p>\n \u201cWe need stronger leadership from this government to bring our communities together \u2013 not divide us,\u201d said Shanken.<\/p>\n The Rabbinical Association of Vancouver sent a letter to the premier, signed by nine rabbis, expressing disappointment.<\/p>\n \u201cWe believe you have capitulated to a small but loud group of people,\u201d the letter read. \u201cNow it feels like you have given in to bullies for political expediency. We will remember this day the next time you ask for our trust and support.\u201d<\/p>\n At least one voice in the Jewish community was pleased with Eby\u2019s decision. \u201cThe decision to remove former MP [sic] Selina Robinson from office is a crucial win for organizers including IJV-Vancouver and our allies, who stood firm and united against anti-Palestinian racism,\u201d tweeted Independent Jewish Voices. \u201cThe rhetoric we all heard was shameful. Thank you to all who helped hold BC accountable.\u201d<\/p>\n B\u2019nai Brith Canada told the Independent<\/i> they are grateful for the work that Robinson undertook to combat antisemitism on BC\u2019s post-secondary campuses as minister.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cIt is unfortunate that comments she made last week have resulted in her feeling compelled to step down from her ministerial position,\u201d Richard Robertson, director of research and advocacy for B\u2019nai Brith Canada, said in an email. \u201cWe believe her apology was sincere and that MLA Robinson will work to regain the confidence of the constituents who were offended by her remarks.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cB\u2019nai Brith Canada believes that this incident underscores the need for the province to take further steps to combat racism and hatred,\u201d said Robertson. \u201cOne such step, amid rising levels of antisemitism, is for the BC government to adopt the IHRA definition of antisemitism.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Screenshot of the Jan. 30 B\u2019nai Brith Canada panel discussion during which Selina Robinson spoke her controversial words. Selina Robinson, who has called herself \u201cthe Jew in the crew\u201d that is British Columbia\u2019s cabinet, is out. The minister of advanced education and future skills resigned Monday after a torrent of protest following comments she made […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":43435,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[755,6422,20500,22729,1677,3597,7008],"class_list":["post-43431","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-local","tag-bnai-brith-canada","tag-british-columbia","tag-david-eby","tag-israel-hamas-war","tag-ndp","tag-politics","tag-selina-robinson"],"blocksy_meta":{"styles_descriptor":{"styles":{"desktop":"","tablet":"","mobile":""},"google_fonts":[],"version":8}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/43431","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=43431"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/43431\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/43435"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=43431"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=43431"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=43431"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}