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As students begin a new academic year, the envoy of Indigenous Embassy Jerusalem (IEJ) is urging governments and institutions to work harder to ensure the safety of Jewish students and communities across Canada.
This plea from Grand Chief Lynda Pierce comes on the heels of a barrage of threatening emails sent in late August to more than 100 Jewish institutions across Canada.
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On Aug. 21, police in multiple cities across Canada responded to bomb threats sent to Jewish organizations, synagogues and some hospitals, the Canadian Press reported. B’nai Brith Canada said more than 100 Jewish institutions received an identical email at 5 a.m. ET threatening their offices in Toronto and Montreal.
Synagogues, Jewish community centres and hospitals in Toronto, Montreal and Ottawa were also confirmed to have received the threat, CP reported.
“As the original inhabitants of this land, we, the First Nations peoples, have welcomed the Jewish people into our lands and territories and like everyone else in this country they deserve to be protected,” Pierce said in an IEJ statement.
Pierce was formerly a First Nation Chief in B.C. and was recently appointed IEJ envoy. The IEJ says it is a platform for Indigenous nations to express their solidarity with Israel and the Jewish people.
She called on governments at all levels to combat antisemitism and bigotry against the Jewish State. “Israel is our democratic ally and a country that blesses all its citizens with civil rights and freedoms,” Prince said.
Meanwhile, she said the IEJ urges learning institutions to provide education about “Jewish indigeneity, Jewish history and Jewish contributions to our country.”
“We must be upstanders and not bystanders,” Pierce said.
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