Dear Ontario MPP,

I write to you today to express our enthusiastic support for the Combating Antisemitism Act. As you may know, antisemitic incidences and hate crimes have been growing in Canada at an alarming rate and Jews remain the community most targeted by hate crime. I ask that you take a stand against rising hatred and intolerance by demonstrating your strong support of the Act.

The Combating Antisemitism Act will require the provincial government to be guided by the definition of antisemitism as outlined by the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA). The Simon Wiesenthal Center was part of the team that crafted the IHRA definition, which has already been adopted by more than 30 countries, including Canada. The definition offers clear parameters for identifying antisemitism and includes a number of illustrative examples that address a wide range of rhetoric, such as calls for violence against Jews, the denial of the Holocaust, the demonization/dehumanization of Jews, as well as classic tropes about Jewish control of government, the media, the banks and other forms of conspiracy.

The Combating Antisemitism Act represents an important step in fighting discrimination against the Jewish community in Ontario. I hope that you, and all MPPs from all parties, will stand united against intolerance and give the Act the unequivocal support it deserves.

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Sincerely,

Avi Benlolo
President and CEO
Friends of Simon Wiesenthal Center for Holocaust Studies