Author: Peter Larson

Ontario high school teacher starts wildly popular petition to support the plan to bring injured Gaza kids to Canada

 revised lauren q right

Lauren Lowe (r.) is a teacher of English and Media Studies at Port Credit Secondary School. Last July, in the midst of the Israeli bombing campaign on Gaza, she heard about Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish’s campaign to bring severely wounded Gaza children to Canada for treatment, and about how the federal government was blocking this humanitarian gesture. She decided she wanted to do something, so she started a petition called “HEAL 100 KIDS”.  That petition now has received over 40,000 signatures. She also invited Dr. Abuelaish to speak to her students.

I had the opportunity to interview Lauren in the week of October 10th. My interview with her follows.

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Does it matter if Homeland is “the most bigoted program on TV”?

HOMELAND (Season 4)

The American television series “Homeland” is wildly popular in Canada. Hundreds of thousands watch CIA agent Carrie Mathison in her continual fight to save western liberal democracy from evil Arab forces motivated by hate and religion. Does this matter to those who want Canada to have a balanced policy with respect to Israel/Palestine? You bet it does. See my article.

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Why does every town in Israel have a “Balfour” street?

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Balfour street in Jerusalem is just one of dozens in Israel

Most Canadians think that the important things of World War I happened in Europe. That is natural, of course, because our terrible losses were in the fields of Flanders.

But World War I was a world war, and it had consequences around the globe. It casts a particularly long shadow in the Middle East, where colonial powers drew lines, created countries and installed rulers.

British Cabinet minister Lord Balfour’s 1917 decision to support the creation of a “Jewish State” in Palestine, known as the “Balfour Declaration”  has caused turmoil in the region for a hundred years.

The Rideau Institute invited me to do an opinion piece on how WWI played a role in shaping the Israel/Palestine conflict. See my “guest blog” here. History buffs might be interested.

United Church human rights activists review progress, plan for the future

Unsettling-goods

After its General Council meeting in 2012, the United Church of Canada launched a campaign against the illegal Israeli settlements in the West Bank. Two years later a group of UCC activists came together to review progress and plan for the future

At its annual meeting held near Hamilton on September 12-14, a group of 42 United Church activists from across Canada decided to continue and strengthen their push to defend the human rights of Palestinians. I was an outside observer. Here are some of my observations on their very successful and productive meeting.

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