CJC responds to Miracle

Letters

Editor: The implication of Nusrat Hussain, chief editor of the Miracle, ("Miracle defends controversial article," Bulletin Opinion, Jan. 23) that Canadian Jewish Congress, Pacific Region, has stirred up a hornets' nest is unfounded. Furthermore, contrary to Mr. Hussain's statement, CJC, Pacific Region, has had no contact with the editor before or after the publication of the anti-Semitic diatribe that appeared in his newspaper.

Mr. Hussain's arguments and tortured justifications for publishing the article were well publicized by the mainstream media and widely condemned. His most recent contribution in which he continues to describe "the consequences of censorship" and his unique interpretation of freedom of speech further demonstrates his inability to understand what impact hate speech has on identifiable communities in Canada.

It is simply outrageous that the editor was willing to publish material written by Edgar J. Steele, a well-known anti-Semite and anti-black racist, whether he was a reader or not. The article is nothing but vile hate propaganda and a poisonous rant unworthy of any rebuttal and, in our view, violates the anti-hate provision of the Canadian Criminal Code. CJC, Pacific Region, has turned over copies of the paper to the B.C. Hate Crime Team for investigation.

Group hatred and the hate speech that propagates it are premised on the irrational fear of "others" and the desire to define and separate communities on the basis of color, race, ethnicity or religion. By defining individuals by such characteristics, in counter-distinction to the values of equality and multiculturalism enshrined in Canada's Constitution, hate-mongers reject the individuality of group members, thereby dehumanizing them.

We have learned that Mr. Hussain issued an apology to the Jewish and Muslim communities in the Miracle.

CJC, Pacific Region, has also expressed our appreciation for the numerous responses we received from the public, including Muslim organizations such as the B.C. Muslim Association, the Muslim Canadian Federation and the Council of American-Islamic Relations Canada. We were heartened by their strong condemnation of the article's content. We are particularly pleased that the B.C. Muslim Association prohibited the circulation of the Miracle at their mosques and centres. As citizens of goodwill, they support the issue of combating hate propaganda when it is directed against identifiable groups.

CJC, Pacific Region, has expressed its desire to the B.C. Muslim Association to use this unfortunate incident as a catalyst in looking for ways to improve communication and understanding between our respective communities.

Nisson Goldman, chair
Canadian Jewish Congress, Pacific Region

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