It was a trip down memory lane this weekend for hundreds of former residents of Bathurst Manor, a Toronto neighbourhood that was built starting in 1954 on the northern limit of the city. The Manor, as it's fondly known, became home to scores of Holocaust survivors and also to Canadian-born Jewish families looking for space, greenery and safety in single family homes that cost under $25,0000. It's estimated that of the 9,000 people who moved in, 7,000 were Jewish. During the pandemic, the Ontario Jewish Archives collected stories and artifacts from the generation of Baby Boomers who grew up in ..read more

Hartley Garshowitz went to England this past week to represent his family at the 80th anniversary ceremonies for the famous Dambusters Raid on Hitler’s Germany in 1943. His uncle, Warrant Officer Albert Garshowitz, of Hamilton, was a wireless operator and air gunner on board one of the Lancaster bombers tasked with a top-secret raid that had never been tried before: to bomb three hydroelectric dams deep inside German territory. It’s an operation that many historians today say changed the course of the Second World War. They also say it was a suicide mission. Albert Garshowitz was one of 133 ha ..read more

On May 29, Albertans will go to the polls in an election that will either return sitting Premier Danielle Smith of the United Conservative Party for a full second term, or turf her in favour of former premier Rachel Notley, who ran Alberta under an NDP government from 2015 to 2019. Smith was sworn in just seven months ago in October 2022, after the resignation of her predecessor, Jason Kenney. She’d already been in politics for years, but even outside of that realm, she has never shied away from voicing her opinions, writing columns for the Calgary Herald before her political career ..read more

An Ontario court judge has sided with former Conservative senator Linda Frum and dismissed a $2.5-million defamation lawsuit brought against her by a Montreal-area newspaper, the Journal Sada Al Mashrek. The judge ruled on May 15 that the lawsuit violated Ontario’s anti-SLAPP laws, which are designed to protect people from long and expensive court cases that would effectively gag them from commenting on matters of public interest. The lawsuit dates back to the summer of 2022, during the federal Conservative leadership campaign. Frum posted two tweets calling out then-candidate Patrick Bro ..read more

On May 16, the House of Commons’ Foreign Affairs and International Development Committee adopted a motion introduced by the NDP’s Heather McPherson, a vocal critic of the Israeli government. Her motion—which passed with the support of four Liberal MPs, the NDP and the Bloc Quebecois—will now see the committee hold hearings on how Canada can foster peace between Israel, the West Bank and Gaza, in light of the recent upswing in violence that has killed at least 89 Palestinians and 14 Israelis this year. McPherson’s views have sparked deep concern from some Jewish MPs and Jewish advocacy organiza ..read more

The group is calling itself the Network of Engaged Canadian Academics, or NECA, and its founders are two professors from Ottawa: Deidre Butler, director of the Zelikovitz Centre for Jewish Studies at Carleton University and Cary Kogan, a clinical psychology professor at Ottawa U. Each has personally experienced anti-Israel or antisemitic incidents in recent years at their workplaces: Butler was not permitted to fundraise to help her religion students accompany her on a study trip to Israel this semester, while Kogan’s faculty association voted to oppose the IHRA definition of antisemitism. The ..read more

Cindy Seni is one of the cast members looking to find true love on the popular new Netflix series Jewish Matchmaking, which debuted on May 3. The show ranks among the streaming service’s most-watched programs in several countries, including in Canada and in Israel. But to Seni’s disappointment, you won’t hear anything on the eight episodes about her Canadian identity and upbringing—including growing up in Thornhill, Ont., and living there until she made aliyah in 2018—because the producers cut all that out. The Netflix series follows Seni, now 28, and a cast of eligible singles from all p ..read more

Michael Kerzner is the highest-ranking Jewish member of Ontario Premier Doug Ford’s government. Kerzner was appointed as solicitor general last June, shortly after being elected in the York Centre riding—his first successful foray into politics—as part of the Progressive Conservatives’ sweep back to power in 2022. Now Kerzner is taking it upon himself to speak out for the Jewish community. Later today, he is scheduled to speak in the legislature about two hot-button issues: the annual Al-Quds day protest held in downtown Toronto a few weeks ago; and the anti-Israel positions held by a newly el ..read more

The government of Newfoundland and Labrador will hold a news conference today, May 9, to officially announce its adoption of the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s definition of antisemitism. The move will be done by proclamation and unveiled at the Confederation Building in St. John’s. “We remain unwavering in our commitment to always challenge antisemitism, wherever and whenever it occurs,” said Gerry Byrne, the cabinet minister in charge of immigration, population growth and skills, in a media release. Officials say the adoption came after a request from local Jewish communities ..read more

When millions of people around the world tuned in to watch Saturday’s broadcast of the coronation ceremony of King Charles, one of them was Manitoba’s lieutenant governor, the Hon. Anita Neville. Neville felt a particular attachment to the new sovereign—and not just because her job is to represent the King in her province. Neville had, just weeks earlier, flown to London for an in person tete-a-tete with her new boss at Buckingham Palace. They talked about the environment, Indigenous Canadians and the inner workings of the coronation ceremony itself. “I think he’s going to be a very fine King ..read more