Jewish Defense North Of The Border,Fern Sidman

Meir Weinstein is no stranger to controversy. After witnessing a rise in white supremacist and neo-Nazi movements in Canada back in the early 1980s, Weinstein, inspired by the teachings of Rabbi Meir Kahane, z"l, initiated the formation of a Jewish Defense League chapter in Toronto.

By the early 1990s the Toronto branch was no longer viable and would remain moribund for more than a decade. But the dangers to Jews posed by the burgeoning expansion of radical Islam led Weinstein to dust off the proverbial cobwebs and reemerge on the Jewish activist scene. He spoke to The Jewish Press about the reactivation of the Jewish Defense League in Toronto and the issues the organization is addressing.

The Jewish Press: Was there any pivotal event or scenario that served as the catalyst in the resurrection of the JDL in Canada?

Weinstein: Rabbi Meir Kahane, of blessed memory, would always say the JDL was the embodiment of an "idea whose time has come." This really hit home with me when in 2006, during the Lebanon war, thousands of Muslims took to the streets of Toronto and Montreal waving the Hizbullah flag and calling for the destruction in Israel.

The political climate in Canada was replete with incendiary messages being spewed forth daily by leaders of Islamic movements - messages that smacked of blatant Jew-hatred. I knew this kind of hate speech had to be taken seriously. I saw the storm clouds on the horizon and realized these groups represent an egregious threat to Jews in Canada and throughout the world.

Did you try to address those concerns through official channels?

I addressed these issues with the Canadian authorities and even spoke with a Hate Crimes officer. I told him Hizbullah was listed by the Canadian government as a foreign terrorist organization and, as such, their demonstrations should be considered illegal. I was told there were ostensible loopholes in the law. It was at that point I knew I had to bring the JDL back into existence.

The JDL and its methods have always been condemned by establishment Jewish organizations. Have there been any recent statements opposing the JDL?

As yet the JDL in Toronto has not been the subject of contempt and ridicule by the "alphabet soup" of mainstream Jewish organizations, but it would not be a surprise if that were coming down the pike.

Actually, as a result of our demonstrations and educational outreach to the Jewish community, the JDL has garnered a magnificent display of support by many rabbis, lay leaders and synagogues. I've been invited to speak at shuls in the Toronto area and throughout Canada and I think our message of standing up to Islamic Jew-hatred really resonates with many segments of the Jewish community concerned with their own survival and the survival of Israel. We are definitely a growing movement.

Tell us about your recent demonstration against the Canadian Arab Federation.

The focus of our protest at the offices of CAF was to condemn its abject silence in the face of vitriolic attacks on Jews by Muslim perpetrators. Their silence is tantamount to tacit approval of anti-Semitism and thus translates into giving a green light to others who would entertain the notion of attacking Jews.

A particularly horrific attack occurred in November 2006. Four Jewish teenagers were viciously assaulted at a Toronto train station by a Muslim man, Mustafa Taj, who did not conceal his hatred for Jews. He was recently convicted and sentenced to a year in prison.

According to a report in The Calgary Sun, "Taj approached the group around 10:45 p.m. and asked, 'Who's Jewish?' Nichola Cordato, then 16, stated 'me' and Taj grabbed her and said, 'I'm Muslim and hate Jews.' He then slapped her in the face and pulled her hair before her friends, Jessica Motta, Kayla Hungle and Daniel Ball attempted to intervene. Hungle attempted to prevent Taj from further attacking Cordato and was punched in the face by him. Motta then intervened and was punched in the face, pulled to the ground by her hair and kicked in the stomach and ribs.

When Ball tried to stop the assaults, he was thrown onto the C-Train tracks where he fell onto his back and was spat upon by Taj.

Just last year, members of the Canadian Arab Federation traveled to Cairo to attend a conference sponsored by the Muslim Brotherhood that featured speakers of both Hamas and Hizbullah. This ideology is quite prevalent on many campuses and mosques in Canada and it is the moral obligation of the JDL to expose the hate of the Muslim Brotherhood, its members and sympathizers.

Does JDL in Toronto adhere to the original ideology of Rabbi Kahane?

I will always be a loyal disciple of Rabbi Kahane. Our ideology is based on the Jewish Idea as taught by Rabbi Kahane.

Every week I send out a JDL Parsha HaShavua sheet to our e-mail list, which consists of 10,000 names. The JDL weekly Parsha contains insights from the Torah reading based on the writings of Rabbi Kahane and it also expounds on the Five Principles of the JDL as originally penned by Rabbi Kahane back in 1968.

I've come to realize that while stressing physical defense is very important, if a Jew is lacking in ideology, if he is without a solid Torah foundation, he really won't understand or totally grasp what we're fighting for. I teach Jews the lessons of ahavat Yisrael that Rabbi Kahane spoke of so long ago.

I still remember Rabbi Kahane saying "if a Jew can't feel the pain of another Jew, then something inside him is dead." The time is long overdue to revive the Jewish soul. I teach that love of the Jewish people, love of the Jewish state and love of Torah is incumbent upon each Jew. It is his moral obligation to stand up for himself, his people and his God.

Read Comments (3)

One small correction
Date 08:08, 08-21, 08

The attack that was reported in the Calgary Sun, took place at the Train Station in Calgary and not Toronto.

We need more leaders like Weinstein.
Date 09:08, 08-21, 08

Thankfully, there are people like Meir Weistein who have the courage to speak out and demonstrate against the insidious malaise of political correctness and appeasement that has paralyzed our traditional institutions, giving Jew haters an open door to espouse and spread their venom.

Common sense seems to have vanished out the window. Its time to expose and isolate the murderers in our midst. I applaud Weinstein and the JDL.

J. Suraski - Toronto.

We want to stand with you.
Date 04:08, 08-24, 08

Please let us christians who love the Jewish people and Israel stand with you.
M. Nieminen, Oakville, ON