Hello everyone. Thank you for your support. It has been some time since I last wrote to you. Once we reached 2,300 signatories, we stopped seeking additional signatories (though members of the profession can still sign). We turned instead to “operationalizing” this national initiative. 

I hope you’ve noticed a number of media stories or public statements from institutions that have supported a respectful dialogue on the Middle East, and on its impact here in Canada, sometimes adopting the language in our open letter or the language contained in the original Ottawa law students’ initiative. Prominent Canadians also authored an open letter published in the Globe and Mail yesterday calling on us all to engage in civil discourse rather than the kinds of unacceptable behaviour they identified. We are trying to build momentum for respectful or civil dialogue. I will circulate some links to these media stories and public statements in a subsequent update. 

Bonnie Goldberg and Amy Pressman have been of immeasurable assistance in facilitating our outreach to students at a number of law school campuses who are interested in establishing a respectful dialogue (particularly in the fall when the new school year starts). 

At the same time, I arranged for mentorship for some students from senior members of the profession drawn from our signatories. Thank you to those lawyers who have participated as mentors. I will continue to advise law students interested in respectful dialogue that mentoring is available, especially if they or their group feel at risk, marginalized or demonized.  I have also met with the leadership of several agencies and associations seeking their partnership with or support of the initiative. 

We have heard from a number of members of the Jewish community and have begun an outreach to the Muslim community.  We also recognize the importance of involving those outside of the Muslim and Jewish communities in moving forward.  In that regard, I wish to commend the Hon. Harry LaForme and Janice LaForme for their support and advice and Justice LaForme’s insights into the lessons we can learn from Indigenous principles. In my view, these principles should inform our relationships with others and any process of reconciliation.

I communicated with members of several other professions about the initiative. Psychologists have arranged to hear from participants in the successful Dartmouth Dialogues. These psychologists hope to create a similar respectful dialogue for their profession. I referred to the Dartmouth Dialogues in an earlier update. 

 Amy Pressman has also communicated with a faculty member who has facilitated a Muslim Jewish dialogue at an Ontario university. Once we expand the numbers of law students committed to respectful dialogue, we will arrange for them to hear from the participants in that dialogue and others.  

The students involved in the Ottawa Muslim and Jewish law students’ joint statement recently described their initiative and the national initiative to Department of Justice employees across Canada. Thank you to those students (named in my earlier updates) for their continuing work on respectful dialogue. 

 
Finally, some lawyers have expressed interest in creating respectful dialogues involving Jewish and Muslim lawyers, not just students. More to come. 
 
Please make no mistake about it. Progress is slow.  Some campuses can only be described as toxic, making dialogue initiatives much more difficult. More generally, hate crimes and/or hate speech are increasing exponentially. For example, Toronto police report that this year, antisemitic hate crimes continue to represent the largest percentage of reported cases — most recently, 56%. The police also express concern about the escalation and underreporting of anti-Islam hate crimes. All this to say, this initiative will sometimes involve short term successes, but often will represent a long term strategy. But there is really no alternative to informed dialogue that involves, as our open letter states, active listening to opposing views, and the rejection of antisemitism and Islamophobia and other forms of hatred, intimidation, incitement to violence or the celebration of violence or barbarity. 

In my next update, I will suggest how you can help advance this initiative and will ask those who are interested to contact us. 

Thank you as always. Miigwech. Merci Beaucoup.

Mark Sandler