Tag: vandalism

“We are safe,” says Shanken

For safety reasons, Jewish Federation of Greater Vancouver is asking community members to avoid anti-Israel protests or events. (photo by Larry Barzelai)

“We are safe,” says Ezra Shanken. The chief executive officer of the Jewish Federation of Greater Vancouver reassured local Jews that, in light of massively increased tensions globally, there are no specific increased threats to the Jewish community in British Columbia.

Despite fears, no serious attacks or incidents of vandalism have been reported, with the exception of an incident in Surrey. Someone threw eggs at the home of Rabbi Falik Schtroks, spiritual leader of the Centre for Judaism of the Lower Fraser Valley, and a swastika was drawn in felt pen on a window of the home.

“One of the things that people who hurt the Jewish people … don’t realize, when that happens, we always come together,” the rabbi told CTV News.

“We’ve seen what happened to Rabbi Schtroks’ place,” Shanken said. “We take that very seriously. But, on the whole, we are safe.”

Jewish community organizations, under the leadership of the Jewish Federation in partnership with other agencies, especially those with physical spaces, like synagogues, schools and community centres, work year-round on security issues, ready for any possible local impacts that so frequently coincide with overseas conflicts.

Shanken credited Federation’s “very active” security committee and the professional security director, all of whom are coordinating among various Jewish agencies.

As he has at successive public events, Shanken heaped kavods on the Vancouver Police Department, the RCMP and other police agencies.

“The amount of resources they are expending on our community, to make sure that we are safe, is astronomical,” said Shanken. “I have just so much gratitude for them and for all they do for us, day in and day out.”

He encourages individuals who encounter police at the Jewish Community Centre, outside synagogues, schools or elsewhere, to take a moment to express gratitude.

“Go up, shake their hand, thank them, give them a hug, give them some cookies, give them some food, make them feel like they are being loved,” he urged.

In addition to simply being a kind thing to do, showing appreciation for the police, Shanken said, is a way to further demonstrate the moral divide between the Jewish community and those who are protesting Israel. Shanken said police working at anti-Israel rallies have been spat on and had things thrown at them.

“I want to make sure that there couldn’t be a clearer distinction in our community from those on the other side when it comes to how we treat our first responders and our law enforcement,” he said. “We are here to say thank you and to engage with them because they are keeping us safe.”

Although schools saw some understandable decline in turnout on the so-called “Day of Rage” called by Hamas against Jewish individuals and institutions worldwide for Oct. 13, Jewish British Columbians are going about their lives.

“People are coming into our JCC,” said Shanken. “They know they should come here and, if anything, they should be here so we’re sending a message that says we will not be dictated to on how it is that we can live within our community by others. We are going to come out and we are going to be strong, proud people within our communities, enjoying the things our community has to offer.”

In a message to the community in advance of the Hamas call for violence worldwide, Federation assured that “we will always act in a proactive, abundantly cautious manner when it comes to community security.”

The communication added that “we also recognize that these calls are also designed as a tool of intimidation and fear to harm our mental and emotional health. They are meant to stop us from going about our daily lives, regardless of whether there are specific security threats.”

The Vancouver Police Department, the RCMP and other security forces are maintaining a visible presence in front of high-profile organizations, including schools, synagogues and the JCC.

“Please note that there may not be a car present at all times and you may not see people in uniform,” the message noted.

Increased patrols are taking place around all Jewish institutions. In addition, Jewish organizations have been flagged by police as priority institutions, which means that any emergency call to law enforcement will result in an immediate and enhanced response, Federation said.

Federation is also working with partner organizations, as they do always, around security protocols.

For individuals and families, Federation is asking people to avoid anti-Israel protests or events. At Jewish community rallies or vigils, people are asked to not engage with protesters. At all times, people should stay aware of surroundings, and report anything suspicious to the police.

To ensure you are receiving all security updates and other communications from the Jewish Federation of Greater Vancouver, click the “Connect” button at jewishvancouver.com. The Federation website also includes resources for talking to children about the situation, and links to specific, up-to-the-minute news on events in Israel and elsewhere.

Ottawa teen sentenced

The front doors to Ottawa’s Congregation Machzikei Hadas on Nov. 17. (photo from Machzikei Hadas via CJN)

An Ottawa teen who vandalized several Jewish buildings last autumn, and who professed pro-Nazi sympathies, was sentenced in August to a year in custody, including time served.

The teenage male, who cannot be named because he was arrested as a minor, has been in custody for nine months, meaning he will serve another three months at Ottawa’s William E. Hay Centre, a youth detention facility. At his sentencing on Aug. 31, he also received two years probation, with several restrictions.

As part of his probation, the youth was ordered to write three 500-word essays, one each on a notable Jewish Canadian, a Muslim Canadian and a black Canadian. He also faces a curfew, restrictions on internet use and was ordered to stay away from the buildings he vandalized.

The teen had pleaded guilty to five charges, including inciting hatred, mischief against religious buildings, threatening conduct, possession of weapons and breaching bail conditions from an assault conviction in 2015. The charges stemmed from a spate of incidents between Nov. 13 and 19, 2016, when spray-painted swastikas, white nationalist symbols and racial slurs were daubed on two area synagogues, a Jewish prayer house, a Jewish communal building, a mosque and a United Church that has a black minister. The Jewish targets were Congregation Machzikei Hadas, Kehillat Beth Israel synagogue, a Jewish prayer centre called the Glebe Minyan that is run out of a private residence and a building on Ottawa’s Jewish Community Campus.

The teen turned 18 soon after the offences occurred. After he pleaded guilty, the Crown prosecutor asked the judge to consider sentencing him as an adult, in order to treat his racist ideology, monitor his movements and designate him a long-term offender. But the judge, Peter Griffiths, denied that request, saying the accused has shown signs of progress that risk being undermined if he were sentenced as an adult.

“We hope the judge is correct in his assessment and that [the teen’s] progress continues, because the best outcome for our community is that he alters his worldview,” Andrea Freedman, president and chief executive officer of the Jewish Federation of Ottawa, told the CJN.

Freedman, who attended the court hearings, said she considered the sentence to be just. “I think the judge was fair and tried to balance the need to infer that public safety is protected and that the sentence acts as a deterrent for others, while balancing the need to rehabilitate this young man,” she said.

Freedman, along with Linda Kerzner, chair of the Jewish Federation of Ottawa, and Elly Bolleggraaf, a local Holocaust survivor, submitted victim impact statements to the court, saying the attacks shocked and hurt the city’s 14,000-strong Jewish community deeply.

Freedman told the CJN, during the teen’s sentencing hearing last May, that the accused “has an extended history of racist and antisemitic views and, by all accounts, is completely unrepentant for his deeply traumatizing actions,” and that he had refused treatment.

“Accordingly, we feel we have no choice but to ask the court to consider a lengthy sentence and an extended probationary period, as well as a restraining order barring him from proximity to Jewish institutions,” Freedman said at the time.

At his sentencing hearing, Dr. John Federoff, a forensic psychiatrist who examined the teen, testified that the young man likely had schizophrenia and blamed his crimes on Jews.

More recently, the teen apparently told youth workers that he’s interested in removing racist tattoos from his body, expressed an interest in mental health counseling and has shown progress in vocational training while in custody, CBC News reported.

Freedman said the teen apologized for his actions before receiving his sentence. “We’re appreciative that this individual has been held accountable for his actions,”she said. “Our primary concern is the safety of our community members.” She added she is hopeful that the progress in the offender’s behaviour noted by the judge “is genuine and continues.”

While previous attempts at outreach have not succeeded, she said, “we continue to remain willing to engage with him in a sincere manner to help him alter his worldview. And we’re hopeful that this is the type of engagement that will bring this individual to successfully change his ways.”

“One year in custody with a two-year probation is the longest sentence ever handed down a young offender for a hate crime,” said Bernie Farber, executive director of the Mosaic Institute, who testified as an expert witness at the teen’s trial. “It sends a strong message.”

– For more national Jewish news, visit cjnews.com