‘Premier Ford Strongly Condemns Targeting of Jewish Schools: Declares ‘Enough Is Enough’
Ontario Premier Doug Ford has a few choice words for those who are targeting Jewish schools in his province: “Enough is enough.”
Mr. Ford suggested the perpetrators of recent shootings targeting Jewish schools are coming from outside the country, saying they should not “come to Canada” if they plan on “terrorizing neighbourhoods.”
“I got an idea, before you plan on moving to Canada, don’t come to Canada if you’re going to start terrorizing neighbourhoods like this. Simple as that.”
“What lunatic goes around shooting up schools? That is just unacceptable,” the premier added.
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“These guys need to be caught, they need to be punished. They need to be thrown in jail. We have zero tolerance for this anywhere in Ontario.”
Opposition members at Queen’s Park have since called on Mr. Ford to apologize for his comments, saying they singled out immigrants.
“Fighting hate with hate has never worked. Fighting anti-semitism with xenophobia won’t keep communities safe,” she wrote. “I’m appalled by the premier’s racist remarks. He should apologize.”
Liberal leader Bonnie Crombie also denounced Mr. Ford’s comments.
Mr. Ford was adamant during the press conference that his message would be the same no matter which community was being targeted.
“It doesn’t matter what race, what creed, what religion you’re from. I’d be saying the exact same thing if it was another community as well,” he said.
He described Ontario as a diverse province with 110 nationalities and hundreds of languages being spoken. Despite that diversity, he said, Ontarians have always managed to get along until recently.
“All this other nonsense we’ve been seeing over [the past] number of months—enough is enough,” Mr. Ford said. “I’ve just had it up to here. And guess what? People outside those communities. They’ve had it too. They aren’t used to this happening here in Ontario. I’m done with this stuff.”
Focus on Safety
The prime minister said it is the job of governments not only to keep Canadians safe, but to remind them of what the country stands for.
“We are seeing events overseas that are devastating and incredibly difficult to watch but it should not be spilling over into Canadians hating on other Canadians,” he said, referencing the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas.
“We shouldn’t be attacking each other,” he said, adding that while those living in Canada have the right to protest, they “do not have the right to endanger or inflict violence on fellow Canadians.”
He pointed to the Security Infrastructure Program as an example of how Ottawa is helping the communities to increase security at places of worship. The program offers funding to communities at risk of “hate-motivated incidents.”
Mr. Ford said the province would “throw every single resource” it has toward catching people attacking schools, religious facilities, and places of worship.
Once caught, he said the justice system should “throw them in jail” and “throw away the key.”
The investigation into the shooting at Bais Chaya Mushka Elementary School is ongoing.
Toronto Police Inspector Paul Krawczyk said May 25 that more officers will be seen at other schools as well as synagogues to increase public safety.
“We’re not going to ignore the obvious, and so the hate crime unit is fully supporting this investigation,” he said.
The incident is one of many targeting Canada’s Jewish community since war broke out in Gaza after the Oct. 7, 2023, terrorist attack by Hamas on Israel.
Chandra Philip contributed to this report.
