Criminal incidents motivated by hate were reported 2,669 times in 2020, representing the largest number recorded since data became available in 2009, a new report from Statistics Canada said.
The report indicated police-reported crimes motivated by hate – specifically targeting a race or ethnicity – spiked 80 per cent.
These incidents were largely fuelled by the pandemic. While hate crimes targeting a race or ethnicity spiked, “police-reported hate crimes targeting religion declined by 16 per cent from 613 incidents in 2019 to 515 incidents in 2020,” the report said.
This decrease, as outlined in the report, is attributed to a decline in incidents targeting the Muslim community, which saw a reduction to 82 incidents in 2020 from 182 the year before.
While the Muslim community may have seen a decline in incidents in 2020, hate-motivated crimes still permeate their community.
Just two days after the report was released, a 24-year-old man allegedly attacked worshippers at a mosque in Mississauga during an early morning congregational prayer. Police said a man entered the mosque where he discharged bear spray toward the congregation while wielding a hatchet.
The Imam of the mosque where the incident took place – the Dar Al-Tawheed Islamic Centre – Ibrahim Hind, described the incident on social media and the bravery of his congregation in helping to thwart this attack.
READ MORE ABOUT THE ATTACK: ‘I REALIZED SOMETHING IS WRONG’
“An individual came wielding an axe and carrying numerous other sharp-edged weapons as well as pepper spray. Before he could inflict any harm on any worshippers, several congregants bravely were able to stop him in his tracks,” Hindy tweeted.
Today at the Fajr (dawn prayer) at the Dar Al-Tawheed Islamic Centre in Mississauga, our congregants were subject to a violent attack.
An individual came wielding an ax and carrying numerous other sharp edged weapons, as well as pepper spray. (1/3
— Ibrahim Hindy (@Hindy500) March 19, 2022
“Our community will never be broken and we refuse to be intimidated,” Hindy said.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau took to social media to condemn the disturbing attack as an important place of worship for a community.
“I strongly condemn this violence – which has no place in Canada – and I’m keeping the community in my thoughts today,” Trudeau said.
The attack on congregants at the Dar Al-Tawheed Islamic Centre is incredibly disturbing. I strongly condemn this violence – which has no place in Canada – and I’m keeping the community in my thoughts today. I also want to applaud the courage of those who were there this morning.
— Justin Trudeau (@JustinTrudeau) March 19, 2022
“Hate crimes against the Jewish population rose slightly in 2020, from 306 to 321 incidents,” an increase of five per cent, the report said.
Due to the pandemic, incidents targeting Jewish and Muslim communities occurred because of disinformation and conspiracy theories related to the pandemic, “often tied to broader anti-Jewish or anti-Muslim theories or beliefs,” the report said.
Jay Solomon, chief communications and public affairs officer at Hillel Ontario, a Jewish organization representing Jewish students across university and college campuses, told Humber News that Statistics Canada continues to point to things many in the Jewish community already know.
“Jewish Canadians are the most frequently targeted religious minority in the country,” Solomon said.
Solomon said for many Jewish people, that discrimination blends into academia, where many face the brunt of the hate on their own campuses.
“Unfortunately, Jewish students on campus are often the epicentre of such hatred and discrimination. This hatred has no place on campus,” Solomon said.
Solomon said that at school, every student – Jewish students included – should be free to pursue knowledge and learn in an environment that promotes equality, diversity and inclusivity, “without fear of being targeted.”
While Hillel represents students in the post-secondary realm, Jewish community members have fallen victim to multiple antisemitic incidents at Ontario elementary and secondary schools in the early months of 2022.
A Jewish teacher was surrounded last month by a group of students while they performed a Hitler salute and created swastikas out of construction paper. The teacher is the daughter of Holocaust survivors.
Michael Mostyn, chief executive officer at B’nai Brith Canada, a Canadian Jewish organization and advocacy group, told Humber News how disturbed he is by the continued increase in hate crimes targeting the Jewish Community along with the rise in hate crimes “across the board,” he said.
“The Statistics Canada numbers are consistent with our own 2020 Audit of Antisemitic Incidents, which also noted an increase in that regard,” Mostyn said.
Mostyn said while 2020 was a difficult year for antisemitism, 2021 was no different.
“Unfortunately, 2021 also proved to be a challenging year for our community, especially when antisemitism from the Middle East hit our streets last May,” Mostyn said.
“B’nai Brith calls on all levels of government to redouble their efforts to fight hate and antisemitism in Canada, including online hate speech,” Mostyn said.