The mayor of Vaughan, Ont., is proposing a bylaw that would prohibit “unpeaceful” protests within 100 metres of places of worship, schools, child-care facilities, and hospitals. The measure comes in response to protests targeting Jewish communities in recent months.
Anyone who violates the bylaw could be fined up to $100,000, he said.
He said the “large, ugly protests” that have taken place near synagogues, schools, and child care centres in the city were the inspiration for the proposed bylaw. He referenced the anti-Semitic vandalism at Chabad House of Maple and the bomb threat at the Jaffari Community Centre and Mosque.
“What we are witnessing represents a wake up call, a wake up call that requires a call to action to protect vulnerable social infrastructure here in our community, and to protect the individual residents who use that infrastructure,” Mr. Del Duca said.
The Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs and the UJA Federation of Greater Toronto called the proposed bylaw a “welcome announcement.”
“To be clear, this is not solely a Jewish issue. Every Canadian has a right to be safe in their community spaces and while accessing vital services.”
Protests Abound
Protests across Canada have surged following Israel’s counterstrike against Hamas in response to the terrorist group’s surprise Oct. 7 attack on Israel, which resulted in an estimated 1,200 casualties, including at least seven Canadians.Vaughan is not the only city to experience pro-Palestine protests that have caused concern among community residents and political leaders alike.
An event that was to be attended by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni at the Art Gallery of Ontario was cancelled March 2 after a pro-Palestine protest in Toronto saw some demonstrators get physical with attendees and passersby.
In a March 4 incident, two groups of protesters, one supporting Israel and the other Palestine, faced off outside the Spanish and Portuguese Synagogue of Montreal. The venue was hosting an Israel real estate fair at the time.
Toronto’s Mount Sinai Hospital was targeted during a pro-Palestinian march last month.
A video of the Feb. 12 protest outside Mount Sinai shows the crowd calling for “intifada,” an Arabic word meaning “uprising” that is used to describe Palestinian protest against what they say is Israel’s oppression.
Another video showed several protesters scaling scaffolding in front of the hospital. One clambered up to a ledge near a bank of windows to wave a large Palestinian flag as the crowd below shouted, chanted, and cheered. Others in the crowd also waved or were draped in flags.
Political leaders of all stripes have spoken out against rowdy protests.
Ontario Premier Doug Ford was one of them. He described the Mount Sinai protest as “absolutely terrible.”
“You cannot protest on hospitals, folks, get some decency,” he said during a Feb. 13 press conference. “Have common sense, these hospitals are there to save lives.”
The prime minister has also condemned the protest, calling it “reprehensible.”
Protestors have pushed back against such comments and have accused politicians of spreading misinformation.
The groups involved in the protest at Mount Sinai—Jews Say No To Genocide, Palestinian Youth Movement-Toronto and Toronto4Palestine—called the politicians’ suggestion that demonstrators targeted the hospital as an act of anti-Semitism “unfounded” and “inaccurate.”
