In shadow of Israel’s war on Gaza, Palestinian diaspora fights to be heard

As Palestinian Canadians fought to get their families retired of Gaza, the government of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau happened to beryllium successful the process of updating its anti-racism strategy.

The national inaugural sets retired argumentation priorities to code systemic racism and favoritism successful Canada, including successful the nationalist service. And successful that, Palestinian assemblage advocates saw an opportunity.

“We pushed the government: ‘You request to recognise [anti-Palestinian racism] ... We request to commencement by having this recognised successful the anti-racism strategy,’” said Majid.

But erstwhile Ottawa unveiled its updated program for 2024 done 2028, that telephone went unheeded.

The caller strategy acknowledged that Canada has seen “unprecedented levels of hatred towards Jewish, Muslim, Arab, and Palestinian communities” since October 2023, and that Palestinians — similar “other racialized and spiritual number communities” — look systemic racism.

Yet anti-Palestinian racism was not explicitly listed successful the document, which defines 4 types of radical and spiritual discrimination: anti-Asian and anti-Black racism, arsenic good arsenic anti-Semitism and Islamophobia.

“This Strategy is designed to enactment each at-risk communities including Palestinian Canadians,” a spokesperson for Kamal Khera, the Canadian curate who oversees the strategy, told Al Jazeera successful an email erstwhile asked wherefore anti-Palestinian racism was not formally included.

Waleed Saleem, the spokesman, said the authorities consulted with communities, including done a National Summit connected Islamophobia and roundtable discussions “with Muslim, Arab and Palestinian Canadians”.

He added that $51m ($70m Canadian) “in nonstop backing to communities is disposable for all, including Palestinian communities”.

Salma Zahid, a Canadian MP from Trudeau’s Liberal Party who has been pushing for the inclusion of anti-Palestinian racism, told Al Jazeera she couldn’t accidental wherefore the word didn’t extremity up successful the caller plan.

“What I tin accidental is that I americium pushing them to recognise this and person it included,” she said.

Zahid organised a series of roundtables implicit the past fewer months to perceive from Palestinians crossed Canada astir their experiences — and she said it is wide that anti-Palestinian racism “is systemic, it is deep, and it existed adjacent earlier October 7”.

She present plans to taxable a study to Khera, the minister, astir what was discussed. “The intent of this is to recognise anti-Palestinian racism, specify it, and person a program – enactment retired recommendations – to combat it,” Zahid said.