Action to curtail weekly anti-Israel protests in Jewish majority neighborhoods in Toronto is the responsibility of police leadership, Ontario Solicitor General Michael Kerzner said in a Tuesday letter to Toronto Police Service Chief Myron Demkiw and Toronto Police Services Board Chair Council Shelley Carroll, claiming that the provincial government had provided law enforcement enough resources to address the issue.
Kerzner said that an anti-Israel Eaton Centre Boxing Day protest last Friday and near-weekly marches through the Bathurst and Sheppard residential neighborhoods were completely unacceptable, though he did not explicitly name the organizing pro-Palestinian movement nor Jewish residents as the targets.
Such incidents were occurring repeatedly and without visible consequence, undermining confidence in the rule of law and law enforcement, according to the solicitor general.
“These incidents have left many residents living in a state of heightened fear and anxiety, concerned about a lack of visible response, and feeling unable to move freely and safely in public spaces or within their own neighborhoods,” wrote Kerzner.
Ontario presses Toronto police to respond to 'criminal acts of hate'
The solicitor general insisted that Ontario Premier Doug Ford’s government prioritized community safety and peace, and had given the Toronto Police Service “tools, equipment, and authorities needed to respond effectively and lawfully to these incidents.” The letter listed training, legislative authority, investments, and strategic resources against hate-motivated crime, as some of the backing provided by the province.
“With those tolls in place, enforcement at the local level is critical. The responsibility now rests with police leadership to ensure that existing authorities to act are used promptly and decisively when criminal acts of hate and intimidation are taking place,” said Kerzner. “Strong action is required to prevent further escalation and hold offenders to account.”
Demkiw and Carroll did not immediately respond to queries from The Jerusalem Post, but the letter was welcomed by York Center MP Roman Baber, who on Tuesday said on social media that Ontario’s call for action was “long overdue.”
Baber said on X/Twitter that additional laws were unnecessary, as all that was needed to address disorder was the will to enforce the law.
The MP had issued his own missive to Demkiw and Toronto Mayor Olivia Chow on December 19 pertaining to the weekly protests. Baber wrote, on behalf of his Jewish constituents, that shifting blame had to cease and the rule of law had to be equally applied before "catastrophe" ensued.
Baber asserted that activists in Toronto were using terms like “intifada” and “resistance by any means necessary” in chants, which were incitements to violence.
“They are not peaceful protests, since they include threats and disturb the peace in a residential neighborhood,” said Baber. “Incursions into predominantly Jewish neighborhoods, including the march on Sheppard Avenue West, instill fear and intimidation. They deprive local residents and businesses of the enjoyment of property.”