Recently, Canadian universities and municipal governments have become large stages for the failure of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) branches to protect the most historically persecuted of communities: the Jews. Hamas and Palestinian advocates have exposed a concerning flaw within DEI offices. When differing minority perspectives collide, DEI workers struggle to understand the conflict and remain impartial in their mission.
DEI officers solve plenty of fake problems but are largely paralyzed before the brutal discrimination and intimidation of Jews. The individuals explicitly mandated to protect vulnerable people, to root out and dismantle discrimination and oppression, have either been complicit in the systematic harassment of Jews or have consciously chosen to ignore abhorrent transgressions such as calls for their extermination. Consider the shocking incidents on so many campuses, where Jewish students face intimidation and threats everywhere, including dorms and classrooms. Their plight is often met with silence by those who should have been the first to condemn it.
In a worrying revelation, Axios reports that a staggering 73 percent of Jewish Canadian university students admit to feeling threatened. Despite this, diversity and inclusion officers have been noticeably silent, offering little to no reassurance as anti-Semitism rises significantly and an increasing number of Jew-based attacks occur in Canada. Similarly, the response to the Oct. 7 Hamas attacks on Israelis has been one-sided and hypocritical. DEI officers are normally quick to call for safe spaces and decry micro-aggressions but have been mostly silent about open hatred and violence against Jews. Their selective outrage is a dereliction of their duty to protect everyone.
The University of British Columbia, York, Queens, and Concordia are already being sued for failing to stem anti-Semitism on campus. A recent Heritage Foundation study shows how on some U.S. campuses, DEI officers may be fueling and abetting perpetrators of anti-Semitic incidents. The exposed discrepancy between DEI actions and the fundamental principles of equality protected by law deserves attention. It’s high time to evaluate DEI paradigms critically. If these structures can’t safeguard the rights and ensure safety for Jewish Canadians, they fail massively to meet their basic obligation. Publicly funded DEI offices must be accountable for their inaction. They must be disbanded.