[ This article was first published in  National New Watch and is being reprinted with the permission of the author, MP Ben Carr, MP for Winnipeg South Centre. https://www.nationalnewswatch.com/2023/10/22/a-call-for-balance/?]

When I was young, my father told me stories of life when he was a kid. I took them all in. One story however, stood out. Around age 12, he recounted with difficulty, that he and a few friends were beat up outside of the Crescentwood Community Centre in Winnipeg, for a single reason; they were Jews.

The fear and anxiety he felt in that moment, is not unlike what we are all feeling today.

Jews make up but 1% of the Canadian population, yet we are the victims of 67% of reported religiously motivated hate crimes in Canada. The events of the past two weeks have led to a spike in reported hate crimes, and we are all sharing the feelings that have made us angry, sad, and filled with unimaginable grief.

The terror attacks of October 7th, 2023 are the deadliest levied against the Jewish people since the Holocaust.

We should be able to live in a world where we strive for peace in the Middle East, while at the same time, being able to state, in no uncertain terms, that we condemn the rape, murder, and kidnapping, of innocent women, children, and the elderly.

We must be able say this without the word “but” inserted to serve as some moral justification. There is no morality to be found in what they have done.

Make no mistake, Hamas is the enemy of the Israeli people and the Palestinian people. Even the lives of people whose interests Hamas claims to represent, mean nothing in their pursuit of hatred.

Last week in the House of Commons, I heard members of opposition parties, including NDP leader Jagmeet Singh call for Israel to “resist revenge”. During debate, when I asked Mr. Singh point blank if he thought Israel’s response to these attacks should be characterized as “revenge”, Mr. Singh pivoted, and refused to simply say “no”. In reference to Israel, he went on to say that “we cannot allow for the continuing dehumanization of an entire population. When we stop seeing each other as human… this is when the seeds of genocide take hold.” He should have delivered that message to Hamas. Again, I asked him a question directly: did he believe Israel was “committing or on the verge of committing genocide?” He refused to say “no”.

I asked Mr. Singh if he felt Israel had the right to defend itself? I asked if he understood that the use of the word “genocide” requires deliberate and intentional action in pursuit of eradicating a group of people? I asked what he thought would happen to the fate of Jewish people should Israel simply lay down its arms while Hamas thrives?

With over 1400 Jews murdered in the cruelest ways, hundreds still held hostage, thousands wounded, and all the while still intact, a group of terrorists whose sole objective is the eradication of Jews from the earth, I challenge anyone, including Mr. Singh, to ask themselves, who is truly seeking to commit genocide?

Nevertheless, we must continue to uphold the value of all human life. Here at home, we can choose to hold dear the human values of compassion, kindness, and dignity, as we struggle through this together.

I have spoken out publicly on this crisis since it began. I have met with the leadership of both the Jewish and Muslim communities in Winnipeg on several occasions, and continue to be in contact with members of both communities on a daily basis. My number one priority right now is to ensure Jewish and Muslim community members feel safe in their homes, at work, and public spaces. This should be the top priority of all governments, community leaders, and citizens alike.

I have met with Jews who fear for their safety both at home and in public. I have met with Muslims who fear for their safety both at home and in public. I am working with government officials at all levels, as well as faith-based community leaders to ensure safety and security is maintained.

Our foundation as diverse communities in Canada is strong, and we will get through this, as we have before, and will continue to in the future.

During the recent unveiling of my father’s headstone, we walked past the burial site of my grandmother. Her epitaph reads: she made everybody feel like a somebody. Right now, more than ever, we must try to live by that example.