Richmond Hill target of anti-Semitic grafitti

A new report indicates anti-Semitism is on the rise in Canada and one York Region rabbi says overcoming ignorance may be the key to battling hate.

Rabbi Michal Shekel, spiritual leader of Or Hadash Synagogue in Newmarket, made the comments following the discovery of anti-Semitic graffiti in a Richmond Hill park, along with the release of an annual audit of anti-Semitic incidents across Canada by human rights organization B’nai Brith.

When a hate crime targets even one person, it affects everyone, Rabbi Shekel said.
“(The) bottom line is we all form one community,” she added.

There were 1,306 incidents of anti-Semitism Canadawide reported to the organization last year, a 3.3-per-cent increase from 2009, the B’nai Brith report states.

The report also highlights six incidents in York Region, which includes Thornhill, Markham and Georgina.

In one incident, a poem written by a student in Markham about never trusting Jewish people was circulated among the student body.

In a separate incident, a Thornhill elementary school student was bullied and taunted with anti-Semitic comments. And last July, a Jewish summer camp’s fence was defaced with pro-Hitler graffiti in Keswick.

Rabbi Shekel suggested some hateful behaviour may be motivated by sheer ignorance and people getting to know their neighbours can go a long way in combating the issue.

Others may be influenced by global events or simply trying to gain attention, she said.

Meanwhile, York police believe bridges, buildings, doors, windows near the transit hub at Yonge Street and Hwy. 7 in Richmond Hill were vandalized with swastikas and hate slogans between early March and April 1. Most of it was anti-Semitic in nature, police said.
A transit security vehicle was also targeted, Det.-Sgt. John Sheldon said.

York police used video footage as part of its investigation, he added. It led to an April 7 arrest. A 19-year-old Markham man faces nine charges of mischief.

The case has been forwarded to the Crown for a decision about whether or not it will be prosecuted as a hate crime, according to York police.

Investigators need to consult with the Crown before hate crimes charges are laid, Det.-Sgt. Sheldon said.

Reached Thursday, the Newmarket Crown hadn’t decided if hate crime charges would be laid. The final decision is made by the Attorney General’s office in Toronto, the Newmarket Crown’s office said.

Rabbi Shekel, meantime, urged caution when interpreting statistics and suggested there could be more than one reason for anti-Semitic incidents to increase, including the possibility people are now more comfortable reporting them to police.

But society appears to be getting desensitized to anti-Jewish racism, B’nai Brith’s chief executive officer Frank Dimant said in a statement.

“This kind of hatred is infectious and insidious,” Mr. Dimant said. “It destroys the very fabric of Canada’s multicultural society and those who would deny its gravity are part of the problem, not the solution.”

He noted cyber-bullying is one of the newest trends in hateful messaging.

Joshua Burg is charged with eight counts of mischief not exceeding $5,000 and one count of mischief exceeding $5,000 in connection with the Richmond Hill graffiti.

He was released and is to appear at the Newmarket courthouse May 11.