Updates on Bill 168 and its Dangers to Free Speech and Academic Freedom | Op-Ed
Written by: Rawan Nabil
On October 22, the Standing Committee on Justice Policy reviewed the status of Bill 168 that would require the Government of Ontario to follow the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) Working Definition of Antisemitism (WDA). Bill 168 passed its second hearing through the Standing Committee on February 27, 2020 and has received significant backlash from Palestinian community groups and solidarity organizations, such as Palestinian Canadian Community Centre (PCCC) and Just Peace Advocates, and Jewish groups, such as Independent Jewish Voices (IJV). Bill 168 has not yet come onto its third hearing and the Standing Committee intends to hold public hearings via video conference on Wednesday, October 28th and Friday, October 30th. Folks who Fleare interested in being considered to make an oral presentation on Bill 168 are required to register by 5:00PM EST on Monday, October 26, 2020. Moreover, folks who wish to comment on Bill 168, instead of offering an oral presentation, may send a written submission by 5:00PM EST on Friday, October 30, 2020. To register or send a written submission, please visit the following link.
Community Efforts to Stop Bill 168
The backlash that Bill 168 has received has been specifically on its conflation of antisemitism with any legitimate criticism of Israel. IJV and Just Peace Advocates were some of the first organizations to launch a call to action to bring awareness to the Ontario legislative assembly of the dangers of implementing Bill 168 and its censorship on academic freedom and freedom of speech.
Independent Jewish Voices also launched a campaign to stop Bill 168 from being implemented. IJV has set much of the foundation for the campaign against Bill 168 with their extensive research on the IHRA and their comprehensive campaign, named NoIHRA. Furthermore, IJV has come up with a definition of antisemitism that we call on the Ontario government to adopt, instead of the IHRA definition. The IJV definition urges the Ontario government to continue to tackle antisemitism as Jewish communities are continuously violently targeted in Ontario. The IJV definition is as follows:
“Antisemitism is racism, hostility, prejudice, vilification, discrimination or violence, including hate crimes, directed against Jews, as individuals, groups or as a collective – because they are Jews. Its expression includes attributing to Jews, as a group, characteristics or behaviours that are perceived as dangerous, harmful, frightening or threatening to non-Jews.” (IJV, 2020).
As such, it is important to implement a definition of antisemitism that truly targets antisemitism and does not conflate any valid criticisms of Israel as a settler-colonial nation-state with antisemitism. In fact, a definition that equates criticism of Israel to antisemitism only serves to censor Palestinians, Jewish communities, and allies that are working towards collective liberation to eradicate all forms of oppression, hate, and bigotry.The most recent efforts to stop Bill 168 have included an email campaign and phone campaign directed at Ontario government representatives to urge those in power to oppose Bill 168 on the grounds that the bill censors freedom of speech and academic freedom.
These efforts have been led by Palestinian youth, Jewish groups and allies, namely Palestinian Youth Movement (PYM), Independent Jewish Voices (IJV), Toronto BDS Network, and Faculty for Palestine. These email and phone campaigns have begun to build political momentum and grassroots mobilization against the bill. Moreover, an informational webinar is being planned for early November that works to develop a deeper understanding of the IHRA definition; providing an alternative and more accurate definition of antisemitism; legal and academic implications of the implementation of Bill 168; and providing a Palestinian perspective and what it means for Palestinians criticizing Israel as a settler-colonial state that prevents Palestinians from returning to their homeland.
ONDP and Civil Liberties Opposition
Although Bill 168 was not collectively opposed by the Ontario New Democratic Party (ONDP), certain MPPs, including Rima Berns McGown and Joel Harden have supported Palestinian human rights and continue to offer their support. For instance, MPP McGown took to facebook to speak out against Bill 168 as she states.
“The IHRA definition is problematic because it gets used to shut down criticism of Israel. Both the New Yorker and the editorial board of the New York Times — as well as multiple other editorial boards and organizations, including the liberal Zionist group J-Street — slammed Trump’s use of it. All of these folks — groups very very alive to and concerned about the rise of antisemitism — are loud and clear that adopting IHRA will do absolutely nothing to stop antisemitism but will have a chilling effect on anyone’s ability to speak about Israel’s civil rights abuses.”
Joel Harden, who has had a long history of supporting Palestinian human rights, stated his support for justice in Palestine. In an interview with Kevin Taghabon on socialist.ca, MPP Harden states, “I believe in justice for the Palestinian people, and I believe in justice for Arabs and Jews in the region.”
Moreover, both the Ontario and British Columbia Civil Liberties Associations have opposed the international campaign to adopt the IHRA-WDA. The Ontario Civil Liberties Association (OCLA) has stated,
“In this context, the OCLA opposes the “hate speech” provisions of the Criminal Code. The said provisions are distinct from the “threat of violence”, “harassment” and “coercion” provisions, are contrary to international law, remove the State’s onus to prove actual harm to any actual specific victim, and are incompatible with democratic values. Further, the said provisions are susceptible to erosion and practical abuse from political campaigns such as the IHRA campaign.”
The British Columbia Civil Liberties Associations (BCCLA) has stated its concern around the detrimental effects that the IHRA-WDA has on freedom of speech and academic freedom. They have called on all levels of government to continue combatting antisemitism while simultaneously protecting legitimate political actions. They argue,
“The IHRA definition of antisemitism is extremely vague, open to misinterpretation, and the document states that it is “non-legally binding.” Not only is the text unsuitable for any legal or administrative purpose in Canada, but the accompanying “illustrations” suggest that the definition conflates critiques of the state of Israel with antisemitism.”
Additionally, the BCCLA states that they fear that if the IHRA-WDA is adopted, it “will serve to severely chill political expressions of criticism of Israel as well as support for Palestinian rights.”
Thus, it is clear that the adaptation of the IHRA Working Definition of Antisemitism (IHRA-WDA) only serves to censor and silence Palestinian, Jewish and allied groups that have legitimate criticisms of Israel as a settler-colonial state. As such, we ask that readers take the actions illustrated above to stop the passing of Bill 168. We ask readers to ensure that their voices are heard and we continue to fight against censorship of academic freedom and freedom of speech.
ACTIONS TO OPPOSE BILL 168:
Rawan Nabil is an activist in the BDS and Palestine solidarity movement, based in Tkaronto (Toronto). She is currently organizing with the Palestinian Youth Movement.
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