A Statistics Canada report released on Monday revealed a 7% increase in police-reported hate crimes in 2019, with the Black community being the most targeted group, followed by the Jewish community which was also the most targeted religious group.

FSWC is extremely troubled by the increase in hate crimes targeting minority groups. While there was a decrease in reported crimes targeting Jewish people, there was a concerning number of unreported antisemitic incidents. Even though the Jewish community accounts for only 1% of the population in Canada, it was the victim of 16% of hate crimes.

We remain steadfast in our efforts to counter antisemitism and other forms of hate, particularly through the education of our youth, and we call on all members of our community to remain vigilant and always report hate-motivated incidents to police.

Amid the pandemic we have seen a growing number of such incidents, both online and in our neighbourhoods. While these statistics are pre-pandemic, they show that rising hate is a real problem that requires all minority communities and our allies standing together in the fight against hate - because hate against one of us is hate against us all.