FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

September 16, 2012. WINNIPEG. “We are offended and deeply pained by the hateful posters that appeared downtown,” said Israel Ludwig, President of the Jewish Federation of Winnipeg.

This incident comes on the eve of Rosh Hashana, the Jewish New Year, one of the High Holy Days.

Singling out the members of the Jewish community, for no reason other than that they are of that community, is the kind of racism that we had hoped had abated. We are surprised that in this day and age, especially in a diverse and caring city such as Winnipeg, that “Jew-baiting” and remnants of the past hatred stay alive and are rekindled by vile and cowardly acts such this one downtown.

The business of the city is the business of the city. Voicing disagreement is a part of the democratic process. However, with the Hitler reference, we have something that goes beyond dissent: it wreaks of racism of the worst kind, the kind rooted in baseless stereotyping reminiscent of the antisemitism that led to the Holocaust and beyond.

This incident is a reminder that we still have a lot of work to do to eradicate racism generally in our community and that all of us should be supportive of those who have to deal with this level of intolerance on a daily basis.

We are encouraged by the messages of support and concern we received from our friends in the community.

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