‍

Toronto (July 4, 2023) – Friends of Simon Wiesenthal Center (FSWC) is deeply disturbed by reports of antisemitic flyers distributed in Peterborough, Ontario over the weekend.

The flyers promote antisemitic tropes and conspiracy theories, accusing the Jewish community of media control and being behind the “Covid agenda,” the slave trade, abortion, mass immigration and the LGBTQ+ movement, among other conspiracies. The flyers are linked to the antisemitic group Goyim Defense League, which is notorious for distributing such flyers and being behind countless rallies and graffiti incidents across North America.

The Peterborough Police Service, which is currently investigating the incident, notified FSWC that it has received reports from 24 streets and has recovered two packages of flyers.

“The Holocaust has taught us the dangers of spreading hateful conspiracies and the importance of confronting hatred before it leads to violence and other more extreme actions,” said FSWC President and CEO Michael Levitt. “Such antisemitic propaganda is extremely harmful to the Jewish community and has no place in any neighbourhood, not in Canada nor anywhere else. We are hopeful that Peterborough police will find the perpetrators and prosecute them to the fullest extent of the law.”

This incident comes one week after antisemitic and anti-Black graffiti was discovered on St. Paul’s Catholic Elementary School in Peterborough and more than a month after Peterborough police launched an investigation into an antisemitic pamphlet being distributed in a neighbourhood. Similar flyers were found in Saskatoon earlier this year.