The mere sound of someone speaking Arabic is enough to make at least one Canadian university professor upset.

A Dalhousie University student has been accused of “intimidation” because he spoke Arabic outside the office of the Israel Exchange Program, which gets some of its funding through the The Gerald Schwartz & Heather Reisman Foundation.  Schwartz and Reisman are better known for their charity HESEG*, the lone soldiers’ fund*.  Tax deductible money raised in Canada supports non-Israelis to attend university after they complete their stint in the Israel military.

The matter of whether or not speaking Arabic is “intimidating” to a grown faculty member will be heard by a university discipline committee. 

What if someone didn’t like to hear Mi’kmaq, Chinese or Russian spoken? Why Arabic?

Imagine if someone did not like Mi’kmaq being spoken, Chinese or (horror of horrors) Russian.  In these times we can’t be too careful! The mere  speaking of Arabic on Dalhousie campus is considered by some to be a hostile gesture– though there are hundreds of Arabic-speaking students at Dal. 

In our rush to support Israel, and say that Palestinians are terrorists, is this what we have sunk to? 

Yes.  The Pro-Israel lobby does not want to hear—

• there is a genocide in Gaza 
• talk about Palestinians’ rights to land and justice
• the fact that nearly 700 Palestinian children have been arrested and tortured since Oct 7, and 250 remain in prison
• that Israel has killed more than 41,000 Palestinians civilians, women and children, in eleven months
• how many thousands of Palestinian children have had amputations due to Israeli air strikes 
• any criticism of Israel 
• “unbalanced and biased views against Israel” which means some Jewish union members have taken two Canadian unions PSAC and CUPE to the Human Rights Commissions to bar any anti-Israel views 

In addition, the pro-Israel lobby wants us to know that they control the narrative. The fact that in almost every country in the world — especially in the US — there have been many massive demonstrations against Israel’s genocide– just means the lobby in Canada has to work that much harder and faster to step on our rights in Canada—and to all but criminalize support for Gaza and for a ceasefire. 

“My great concern is how democracy in Canada is being killed by this genocide.”

Today I received an email from a friend in Ottawa.  This line struck me: 

“My great concern is how democracy in Canada is being killed by this genocide.”

So true: our much vaunted Canadian democracy is being hijacked by those who want to back Israel as it is. This includes our prime minister, the cabinet and the scores of politicians who have taken the free trips to Israel courtesy of the Israeli government. 

Is justice served by Canada propping up Israel at all costs? Where is the justice in 

• Echoing US pro-Israel policies 
• Selling millions of dollars worth of weapons, tanks and arms to Israel
• Trying to stamp out free speech about Palestine and settler colonialism on university campuses
• Prosecuting students (and staff) who stand against Israel 
• Denying people jobs if they dare to favour Palestinians
• Firing people who claim solidarity with people in Gaza
• Removing hospital privileges and more from health care workers in support of a ceasefire
• Firing journalists who speak out against Israel’s policies

And now it has come to this:  speaking Arabic is akin to waving a red flag in front of a bull. There is a disciplinary hearing and it could result in the student being banned from a university building, having to apologize for speaking his own language, or maybe paying a fine?

How can this be?

*About Heseg:

“…  billionaire power couple Gerry Schwartz and Heather Reisman have given nearly $200 million to support non-Israelis joining an occupation force brutalizing Palestinians. In 2005 Reisman and Schwartz established the HESEG Foundation for Lone Soldiers, which supports Torontonians, New Yorkers and other non-Israelis (Lone Soldiers) who join the Israel military. Have all Canadians provided a tax write-off of 90% to Reisman and Schwartz’s funding for a charity violating CRA rules by assisting a foreign military and possibly Canada’s Foreign Enlistment Act? If so, that would mean Canadian taxpayers gave $180 million while Reisman and Schwartz were out of pocket only $20 million.” Yves Engler, his blog is here

Image at the top: The encampment for Palestine at Al-Zeitoun University (aka Dalhousie University in Halifax, NS) Photo credit: students4liberatedpalestinehfx/Instagram