by Jeremy Appel, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
(AJNews) – On March 13, the Alberta Legislature voted unanimously to affirm the endorsement and adoption of the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) working definition of antisemitism through a Private Members’ Bill sponsored by Richard Gotfried, MLA Calgary-Fishcreek, with assistance from Tany Yao, MLA Fort McMurray-Wood Buffalo. All present in the legislature, from all parties, voted in favour of the motion.
“This is an important achievement for our Calgary and Edmonton communities as the IHRA definition provides policymakers, law enforcement, and community leaders a tool to identify, understand, and combat contemporary forms of antisemitism and Jew hate in public life, the media, schools, the workplace, and in the religious sphere,” stated Calgary Jewish Federation CEO Adam Silver and President Lisa Libin with Jewish Federation of Edmonton CEO Stacey Leavitt-Wright, and Community Relations co-chairs Adam Zepp and Steven Shafir.
Calgary Jewish Federation and The Jewish Federation of Edmonton along with their advocacy partner CIJA, and B’nai Brith Canada have been working for many years to have this definition recognized and endorsed by government leaders.
“Today’s nonpartisan affirmation acknowledges the need for increased action against the growing threat of antisemitism within our province, noting that antisemitism cannot be properly addressed unless formally defined,” added Silver.
Both the CJF and JFE remain committed to working in partnership with key stakeholders towards proper and effective implementation.
“We thank all of the elected officials who led or supported this effort, and for their dedication to combating antisemitism and Jew hate in Alberta. We appreciate the community leaders who came to witness this bipartisan endorsement.”
Good to see that in some provinces, the NDP party still officially believes in Israel’s right to exist as a Jewish state and that all of their sitting members share that belief.