Howard Fremeth

VP, Comms @CIJAinfo; Formerly @BizCouncilofCan, @NATIONALPR & @IsraelinCanada; Husband & Dad; Opinions are my own

[Howard Fremeth @HowardFremeth]

@CarymaRules @ezralevant Libels don’t just impact international affairs, they increase hostility and threats to Jewish Canadians.

[Caryma Sa'd - Lawyer + Political Satirist @CarymaRules]

Flotilla activist Daniela Bonamico initially reported a sprained ankle, fractured tailbone, and leg injuries from a flash grenade while in Israeli custody, and has now added a broken rib to her list of injuries.

When asked about her apparent speedy recovery, she said she had to sit on a donut cushion during her flight back to Canada.

📸 Jun 7, 2026

#Toronto #ProtestMania

[Adam Hummel @HummelAdam]

Our Bathurst Pilgrimage is one of a kind

Thanks @UJAFederation @CIJAinfo

There aren't many places, and there haven't been many centuries, where 60,000 Jews could walk through a major city in broad daylight, flags up, and come home safe. We did that today. We should never take it for granted.

https://t.co/yAAkkeJER9

[Howard Fremeth @HowardFremeth]

@HummelAdam @UJAFederation @CIJAinfo Powerful analogy and piece, Adam

[CP24 @CP24]

#DEVELOPING: Walk With Israel draws tens of thousands in Toronto amid tight security
https://t.co/UnvYhB1KQu

[National Newswatch @natnewswatch]

Former top soldier warns against pivot to China amid tensions with the U.S. https://t.co/jTmUk6bOgH

Find out more at https://t.co/1zbPY5GAhV

[Howard Fremeth @HowardFremeth]

Canada might be saved after all.

https://t.co/t0lOB9gyzn

[Howard Fremeth @HowardFremeth]

@cbcwatcher Canada’s covenant is failing Jewish Canadians — including publicly funded institutions.

[Howard Fremeth @HowardFremeth]

@cbcwatcher 💯

[Howard Fremeth @HowardFremeth]

Thank you @Sean_Speer and @TheHubCanada for so clearly explaining what’s at the root of the antisemitism crisis & why all Canadians should be so concerned.

This is not about one community’s safety, but the type of country we leave behind for future generations of Canadians.

[Sean Speer @Sean_Speer]

Is Canada safe for Jews? That’s the wrong question

New and exclusive polling for The Hub finds that more than 80 percent of Canadians believe that Canada remains a safe country for Jews.

The finding is striking because it suggests that the rise of the new antisemitism has yet to fully register with much of the public. Canadians may see disturbing incidents in the news, but many still assume that Jewish communities are able to live, worship, gather, and participate in civic life without extraordinary concern for their safety.

Yet the lived reality is often quite different. Across the country, synagogues, schools, community centres, and other Jewish organizations are spending significant sums on private security, surveillance systems, barriers, guards, and other protective measures. These are costs that many institutions scarcely contemplated a decade ago. Today they have become a routine feature of operating budgets.

This should concern all Canadians. The most basic responsibility of the state is to provide public order and security. Before governments regulate markets, redistribute income, or pursue any number of social objectives, they must first ensure that citizens can safely exercise their fundamental freedoms. When religious communities feel compelled to internalize the cost of their own security, it’s a sign that the state is falling short of this core obligation.

The consequences extend beyond the immediate burden imposed on Jewish institutions.

Many synagogues, schools, charities, and community organizations enjoy charitable status because governments recognize that their activities contribute to Canada’s civic life. They educate children, care for seniors, support families, provide social services, foster community, and strengthen the social fabric. The public subsidy implicit in charitable status reflects a judgment that these activities generate benefits that extend well beyond their own members. But every dollar that must be redirected toward security is a dollar that cannot be spent on those missions.

A synagogue that hires additional guards may have fewer resources for educational programming. A community centre that upgrades security infrastructure may have less money available for outreach, charitable work, or support services. A Jewish school facing rising security costs may have fewer resources to devote to teaching and student support.

These are real opportunity costs. They represent a loss not only for Jewish communities but for Canadian society as a whole.

One way to think about the issue is that government failure in one domain is undermining government policy in another. The state grants charitable status to these organizations because it wants them investing in civic life. Yet its inability to provide basic security forces them to divert resources away from precisely those activities. The result is a poorer and weaker civil society.

This is why concerns about antisemitism shouldn���t be viewed as issues affecting only Jews. A country in which one religious minority must increasingly provide for its own safety is a country experiencing a broader failure of public order. And when institutions that strengthen our communities are forced to redirect resources from their missions to their protection, the costs are ultimately borne by all of us.

The question isn’t simply whether Canada remains safe for Jews. It is whether Canadians recognize the growing costs of making Jewish communities responsible for their own security.

[Howard Fremeth @HowardFremeth]

@vcmancinelli @calxandr @UJAFederation @thealliescanada Thank you for your allyship

[Howard Fremeth @HowardFremeth]

@stephen_taylor 😂

[Howard Fremeth @HowardFremeth]

@JonFraserTF 🎯

[The Hub @TheHubCanada]

.@harrisonlowman: 70% of Canadians say antisemitism is rising, and only 25% strongly agree Canada is safe for Jews: Exclusive poll

https://t.co/9UZ0BujajB

[Howard Fremeth @HowardFremeth]

@rmohamed_yow Mazals

[Howard Fremeth @HowardFremeth]

@terrynewman @itsrobroberts Awful news. That graphic novel has been foundational in my education.

[Harrison Lowman @harrisonlowman]

"Seventy percent of Canadians say antisemitism is on the rise, but a new exclusive Hub poll suggests the support beneath that concern is far softer than headline numbers imply—pointing to what pollsters are calling a “concerning soft centre” of hesitant, conditional solidarity with Jewish Canadians.

“Canadians overwhelmingly affirm Jewish belonging and reject antisemitism,” the report’s authors write. “[B]ut much of this support is only ‘somewhat,’ revealing hesitation beneath the surface.”

..Eighty-nine percent of Canadians agree Jewish people belong in Canada as much as anyone else. But 37 percent of that majority qualified their agreement with “somewhat”—a hedge that runs through the entire poll like a fault line.

The same softness also appears when Canadians are asked whether Jewish people should not be punished for the actions of the Israeli government: 87 percent agreed, but within that, 38 percent said only “somewhat.”

Asked whether all Canadians should stand against antisemitic statements and behaviour, 87 percent agreed. Again, 38 percent qualified that with “somewhat.”

The starkest number was around safety. More than eight in 10 said Canada is a safe place for Jewish people. But 57 percent of those respondents said only “somewhat,” and just 25 percent strongly agreed.

..Acceptance, protection from collective punishment, and standing against antisemitism are all majority viewpoints, but nearly 40 percent of Canadians in all cases don’t offer their full-throated support.

“Four in 10 people are either vulnerable or have qualifications. There’s something that’s stopping them,” said Heather Bastedo, president of Public Square Research, who conducted the poll. “I was surprised.” “The soft centre was a little larger than I expected in places.”

[Richard Marceau @richardmarceau]

When a synagogue is attacked, it’s a message to the entire community that is sent. A toxic, hateful one.

And make no mistake: when Jews are targeted like this, it’s the values that hold our society together that are attacked.

https://t.co/3Iucn3ru60

[Vina Nadjibulla @VinaNadjibulla]

Great news! Good to see Canadian parliamentarians traveling to #Taiwan despite growing pressure from Beijing. #democraticSolidarity #PRC

[Howard Fremeth @HowardFremeth]

“Canada’s civic compact is failing Jewish Canadians”

[Gary Anandasangaree @gary_srp]

The attempted arson attack outside Temple Emanu-El-Beth Sholom in Montreal this morning is absolutely deplorable.

I’m thinking of the entire Jewish community in Montreal. The rise in antisemitism is horrifying—Jewish communities deserve to live without fear for their safety. Thank you to law enforcement for their swift action in apprehending the suspect.