Edmonton

Edmonton’s Anne Frank statue

Officials in Edmonton unveil the first sculpture of Anne Frank in Canada. (photo by John Stobbe/Dutch Canadian Centre)

On Aug. 8, 2021, officials in Edmonton unveiled the first sculpture of Anne Frank anywhere in Canada. The world’s newest memorial to her – a life-sized bronze sculpture gifted by the Dutch Canadian Club, based in Alberta – now sits in a park in Edmonton. It is a replica of one that stands in Utrecht, Netherlands.

The unveiling marks the 75th anniversary of the liberation of Holland in the Second World War, and gives thanks to the Canadian soldiers who freed their country from Nazi Germany in 1945. But there’s a second meaning behind the timing – and it’s a strange coincidence. On this August weekend, 77 years ago, Nazis raided the secret annex in Amsterdam, where Frank and her family had been hiding for nearly two years, and arrested them. A few days later, they were sent to the Westerbork transit camp and, later, they would be shipped to Auschwitz.

On the Aug. 9 CJN Daily Podcast (ellinbessner.com/the-cjn-daily-podcast), readers can hear from the people who pushed for the statue and raised $75,000 to create and erect it, as well as from Gillian Horwitz, who runs Holocaust programming for the Jewish Federation of Edmonton, and Steve Shafir, the federation’s president, who were at the unveiling ceremony in person.

– For more Jewish national news, visit thecjn.ca

Sisterhood building bridges

Members of Sisterhood of Salaam Shalom enjoy a Ramadan Iftar dinner together at a local mosque. Naz Qureshi is at top right and Rabbi Gila Caine is seated in the front row, second from the right. This photo was taken before the COVID-19 crisis. (photo from Naz Qureshi)

Sisterhood of Salaam Shalom, which works with Jewish and Muslim women to combat hate, stereotyping and prejudice, has chapters in the United States, England and Canada. After a trip to Israel in 2017, Naz Qureshi, who is Muslim and whose parents are from Pakistan, decided to start up a Salaam Shalom chapter in her own city, Edmonton.

“I’ve been to Israel/Palestine twice,” Qureshi told the Independent in a recent interview. “It’s one of my favourite places to go. I love to see the political dynamics, because … I can weave in and out of both sides. I’m Muslim, so the Palestinians get me. But yet, I’m very Western, so the Israelis get me, too. I don’t wear a hijab. I’m not seen as a threat. I can see it from both sides. I think that, because I’m also a South Asian Westerner, of course, the conflict is near and dear to my heart and I’m passionate about it, but I’m not as invested in it as a Middle Easterner would be.”

During Qureshi’s 2017 visit to Israel, she said, “Completely by chance, this Orthodox rabbi and I started talking about religion and we ended up becoming extremely good spiritual friends. We realized that our faiths have so much in common.”

On her way back to Edmonton, via Toronto, Qureshi happened upon an ad for Sisterhood of Salaam Shalom and reached out when she got home. She contacted Temple Beth Ora’s Rabbi Gila Caine.

“Gila was completely interested,” said Qureshi. “I said, ‘OK, this is perfect, because you’re a rabbi and you can bring the Jewish women, and I can bring the Muslim women.’”

Each leader managed to find a half dozen interested women from their communities, and they began meeting on a monthly basis in homes and places of worship.

“Initially, you don’t broach the Israel-Palestine topic, because you’re just going to have a breakdown of communication right there,” said Qureshi. “Instead, we started with similarities. And it’s not just like, ‘OK, let’s eat some baklava and hummus.’ No. You delve into really interesting topics, like our holidays, our festivals. Salaam Shalom provides you with a whole binder if you’re not able to work on your own topics. They’re really good at guiding you.”

By eliminating stereotypes and hate, and developing friendships, participants begin seeing the other’s points of view and standing up for one another.

To help create intimate friendships, chapters are kept small. “You can’t hate somebody who you end up liking,” said Qureshi. “And then you think, ‘Wow, this person is a lot like me.’

“I think that when that happens – I’ve seen it over and over again from both sides – it creates really interesting dynamics. When you see that wall fall, it’s like the Berlin Wall cracking and this realization that, ‘Oh, my God … this person is not evil, they’re really interesting and fun to be around.’”

At one of the meetings, members were asked to share a personally meaningful story from their faith tradition. “I remember one, I think it was my favourite,” said Qureshi. “We were at Gila’s house and Gila shared about the Kiddush cup. I’d brought zamzam water (Muslim blessed water) and explained its significance. We ended up toasting zamzam water in the Kiddush cup and it was amazing…. When we left, we all had that warm fuzzy feeling in our hearts.”

Just before the coronavirus outbreak, the group had planned to have an event to assess participants’ interest in continuing, but the gathering had to be postponed.

“What I really like about Salaam Shalom is the intimate, smaller group discussions,” said Qureshi. “You get past the formalities, past your name and what do you do, and you delve into real issues and gain an appreciation and learning from one another.

“There is so much Islamophobia and antisemitism on both sides and I really wish that people would just go out and make a Muslim or Jewish friend, and then you can see this closeness that exists.

“I think it’s maybe also so important for women especially to be doing this work because it’s easier for us … no matter where you fall on the spectrum, liberal, conservative … we tend to be more open.

“We can portray Muslims not in this negative stereotypical light, too,” she added. “We’re not all terrorists, we’re not all crazy…. It’s really important to sow those seeds wherever you can.

“Going back to my Israeli friend, the Orthodox rabbi, he feels so close to Palestinians he knows now … whereas before, he was a completely different person. Now, I think, from knowing me and when we talk about religion and the shared stories and our deep love of God and respect, he feels this closeness to Palestinians.”

After Qureshi’s phone interview with the Jewish Independent, she shared a message she received from her rabbi friend, which read: “The other day, when I came home after one of my rounds, I tried to park the minibus in the usual spot and there was this guy who told me that he cannot clean the area because I park there, so I parked somewhere else. Later, I go over to him and ask what days he comes to clean, so I know when not to park. He was a Muslim and he said, ‘I like you.’ He said he recognized me from before. Apparently, he used to sweep the area some time ago and remembers that I used to compliment him and say a good word. Anyway, he literally kissed me! It took me by complete surprise! Who would think of [a Muslim] kissing a Jew? Anyway, we exchanged numbers and now there’s another Muslim friend added to my list.”

Qureshi reflected, “Hearing this message made my Monday morning. I got off the train feeling elated and walked the remaining blocks to work. The sun shone a little brighter and the cooling breeze appeared to be sent directly from the heavens above! The scene was playing over and over in my mind. ‘Who would kiss a Jew?’ Why, a Muslim could and would kiss a Jew! And what had elicited such a strong emotional response? That a Jew could and did act kindly to a Muslim.”

Rebeca Kuropatwa is a Winnipeg freelance writer.

Youth feed homeless people

Youth from Temple Beth Ora and Gathering Angels in Edmonton help out at Boyle Street Community Services shelter. (photo from Rabbi Gila Caine)

In Edmonton, Rabbi Gila Caine and Muslim leader Nesrine Merhi-Tarrabain have combined forces to serve their local community.

Caine is spiritual leader of Temple Beth Ora, a Reform synagogue in Edmonton with nearly 100 families, which celebrated its 40th anniversary last year. Merhi-Tarrabain is director of Gathering Angels, which runs an educational centre that teaches Muslim girls Islamic values.

Caine grew up in Jerusalem and moved with her husband, Ariel, and their two young children to Edmonton more than two years ago to lead Temple Beth Ora. Their kids attend the local Talmud Torah school.

Growing up, Caine learned early on, and more so in her early teens, to always be looking for ways to strengthen and help community. She wanted to bring that same mindset – of taking responsibility for your local community – to b’nai mitzvah-age kids at her Edmonton congregation.

“We’ve wanted to go out of the classroom and do stuff outside for a few years now,” Caine told the Independent in a recent interview. “And then, through another connection I have, with Salaam Shalom group, I asked one of them if perhaps they have somebody in their community that does stuff with kids … and that maybe we could do stuff together.

“I thought that would be really cool if we could get the b’nai mitzvah kids to go out and do stuff in the community, but with other youth of a different faith group,” she said.

Caine was connected with Merhi-Tarrabain. After some effort and time, the synagogue and educational centre managed to get together on a Saturday in November, preparing and serving both breakfast and lunch at Boyle Street Community Services shelter.

“We brought food with us, had her girls, my kids, and some parent volunteers working in two shifts there that day – working together, preparing sandwiches, cooking,” said Caine. “It was actually funny to see – it was more the parents that were connecting and talking … [while] the kids were basically doing their work quietly. But, the parents got into really nice conversations with each other and they served the food. And everybody from both sides came away feeling that we should do this again.”

photo - The interfaith initiative at Boyle Street Community Services was led by Nesrine Merhi-Tarrabain, third from the left, and Rabbi Gila Caine, second from the right — The interfaith initiative at Boyle Street Community Services was led by Nesrine Merhi-Tarrabain, third from the left, and Rabbi Gila Caine, second from the right. *(photo from Rabbi Gila Caine)*

Caine is hoping to make serving the community a tradition at Temple Beth Ora, possibly with Gathering Angels again, as well as with other groups.

When thinking of the best activity to launch the b’nai mitzvah community service initiative, Caine chose this particular one – preparing and serving food – as she knew from experience that many of the kids really enjoy dealing with food service, having seen them help out at the shul.

“Some of these kids are b’nai mitzvah kids and they want to volunteer again,” said Caine. So, the youth group counselors “will sit with them and talk to them about what they want to do. This is the next step,” she said.

After the November project, there was another food-related volunteering opportunity for the kids last year. They joined the Edmonton Jewish community as a whole to prepare a Christmas meal for another shelter. “They really wanted to take part in that,” said Caine. “And now we will see what they will come up with next.”

According to Caine, having Merhi-Tarrabain at the Boyle Street Community Services kitchen was beneficial for several reasons, including that she had volunteered there with the girls in the past and had experience. That meant Merhi-Tarrabain could offer tips about what food to bring and how to best help in the food’s preparation and serving.

“Now, some of the parents who were there, they want to initiate more of these things,” said Caine. “And now, we have a better idea of how to do that.”

Both faith groups understand that more such gatherings are necessary before the youth can make lasting connections.

Caine said her synagogue is trying to create a project with another Muslim youth centre in Edmonton and also with one of the city’s churches. “We’re trying to create a program,” she said, “where they will have meetings, talk and learn and do stuff together … hopefully resulting in some real connection-making.”

Rebeca Kuropatwa is a Winnipeg freelance writer.

מחירי הנדל”ן

עכשיו תורה של טורונטו להזיע: מחירי הנדל”ן בעיר הגדולה של קנדה לא מפסיקים לעלות (צילום: Benson Kua)

עד לאחרונה דיברו בקנדה על שוק הנדל”ן החים ביותר שנמצא באזור ונקובר. בחודשים האחרונים נראה שמחירי הנדל”ן בוונקובר קצת נרגעו לאור הטלת המס על זרים בהיקף חמישה עשר אחוז. ועתה כל העיניים מופנות אל אזור טורונטו, שבה מחירי הנדל”ן לא מפסיקים לעלות, וראשי ופרנסי העיר אובדים עצות ומזיעים.

מחירי הנדל”ן בישראל עלו ב-6.3 אחוזים בשנת 2016 ויש הרואים בכך עלייה משמעותית. אך לעומת זאת בטורנטו העיר הגדולה בקנדה והשלישית בגדולה כיום בצפון אמריקה (עם כשישה מליון תושבים), מחירי הנדל”ן עלו בשנה האחרונה בצורה משמעותית ומדאיגה של שלושים ושלושה אחוז. מדובר בעליית המחירים החדה מזה קרוב לשלושים שנה, כאשר מחיר של בית בממוצע באזור טורונטו עלה מכשבע מאות אלף דולר עד לכתשע מאות ועשרים אלף דולר כיום.

יש לזכור כשמשווים את מחירי הנדל”ן בין ישראל לקנדה את שערו של הדולר האמריקני. בעוד שבשנים האחרונות השקל הישראלי התחזק מאוד מול המטבע האמריקני, הדולר הקנדי באותה עת נחלש משמעותית. לכן עם משווים בין מחירי הנדל”ן בין שתי המדינות לפי שער הדולר האמריקני, הפער הוא הרבה יותר קטן לטובת קנדה.

לאור טרוף המחירים של הנדל”ן בטורונטו ראשי המערכת הפוליטית בעירייה ובמחוז אונטריו, מחפשים פתרון הולם שיצנן במקצת את השוק, ויאפשר לרבים יותר להיכנס אליו. הפתרון אם קיים הוא מסובך ביותר טוענים האנליסטים. ראש עיריית טורונטו, ג’ון טורי, אומר: “אני מאוד מודאג מהתיסכול של הדור הצעיר שמנסה כעת לרכוש דירות”. לדעת האנליסטים: “ללא התערבות משמעותית מצד הזרועות השונות של הממשל, מחירי הנדל”ן ימשיכו לטפס עוד ועוד באזור טורונטו, ואנו רואים את המשך המגמה הזו גם החודש (אפריל)”. אחת האפשרויות לנסות להרגיע את שוק הנדל”ן המקומי היא להטיל מס רוכשים זרים, בדיוק כפי שנעשה בוונקובר בחודש אוגוסט אשתקד. אך יש טוענים שמס כזה לא יעזור, לאור מחסור בהיצע של נדל”ן למרות שפרוייקטים רבים הולכים ונבנים ברחבי העיר, וכן יש לא מעט התחלות בנייה חדשות. יש משקיעים רבים שרוכשים נדל”ן בכמויות גדולות ומוכרים אותו כשהמחירים עולים. ונקובר סובלת מתופעה קשה זו שקשה מאוד להפסיקה וגם טורונטו נמצאת באותה סירה בעייתית.

יש שטוענים שמס בגובה חמישה עשור אחוז על זרים שמעוניינים לרכוש נדל”ן נחשב למס גבוה מאוד. אך לעומתם נציגי המפלגה הדמוקרטית החדשה שנערכת לבחירות במחוז בריטיש קולומביה, מציינים כי אם מפלגתם תקים את הממשלה הבאה, המס על הזרים אף יוכפל.

על טיפשות יושבים בכלא: גנב כספומט והסיע אותו על הטרקטור לעיני כל

כריסטופר הופלה בן העשרים ותשע מאדמונטון הוכיח שהוא גם גנב וגם טיפש. הופלה תכנן לגנוב כספומט ולברוח עימו אך מתברר שהוא התרשל.

הופלה נהג בטרקטור ועימו פרץ בשעות הבוקר המוקדמות לעסק שמעניק הלוואות, וממוקם בחנות בצפון העיר. לאחר שריסק את חזית החנות במסגרת המבצע, הוא העמיס את הכספומט שהיה בה על הכף הקדמית של הטרקטור, והחל לנוע מהמקום בנסיעה איטית. המשטרה שהוזעקה בינתיים לחנות שניזוקה קשה, מצאה במקום סימנים של רכב כבד. השוטרים הסתכלו החוצה וראו בקלות שטרקטור נעלם בסימטה הסמוכה. תוך דקות הם עצרו הופלה שנהג בטרקטור וכאמור בחזיתו על הכף היה מונח הכספומט הגלוי לכל. הוא יועמד לדין על עבירות של פריצה וגניבת רכוש. ועל טיפשותו הוא צפוי לשבת בכלא תקופה ארוכה. אולי שם ילמד לקח.