Frank Dimant looks back

Frank Dimant

For 36 years I have had the privilege to blend my love for the Jewish people and my desire to help advance the Jewish community into a professional calling. For the most part, it has been a rewarding experience.  At times, however, it was filled with frustration and anxiety.

The rewards came from the average Jewish person, those individuals who make up the grassroots of our community.  Even now, as I encounter them at restaurants, synagogues, on the street or at rallies, many (some of them even tearfully), appeal to me not to leave. Rabbis have called and asked that I stay on at this critical time and the question most often asked is, “Who will speak now, with a strong voice, in defence of our community?”  I am truly humbled by this outpouring of expression.

B’nai Brith Canada has always been committed to preserving checks and balances in our society. This enabled the Canadian government and the diplomatic corps as well as media to understand the dynamics of our community. I am confident that the future leaders will ensure that its professional echelon continues in a tradition of having an open and transparent Jewish community.

Under the auspices of The League for Human Rights, and with the aid of the Anti-Hate Hotline and other innovative endeavours, it was important for me, as a child of Holocaust survivors and as an immigrant to this country, to ensure that Holocaust education be a critical component of the Canadian psyche.

“Never again” are not merely words – they should convey a message of activism and strong condemnation of those that seek to harm our people.

The Holocaust and Hope Educators’ tour was first initiated by B’nai Brith Canada and its League for Human Rights.  Annual audits of anti-Semitism were created and helped to give us, the Jewish community, an understanding of where we were, and still are, heading.  Not always were our initiatives well received.  Quite frankly, the most serious attacks were not from the Ernst Zundels, Keegstras or Malcolm Rosses who we fought with a vengeance, nor were they even from Palestine House, or from other hate groups.  

Very often, the opposition to our responsible activism came from fellow Jews and other Jewish organizations and publications. 

It has always been my belief that our people are not governed by the dictum that a single voice speaks for the consensus of the community, even when it was presumptuously called the Parliament of Canadian Jewry.  My position was, and remains, that the community is always better served by having checks and balances.  Responsible Jewish activism demands an independence that allows one to articulate the realities as seen though the eyes of those who understand the lessons of the Holocaust.  Silence is never an option!

Alerting the Jewish communities to the dangers that were about to come to the campus world was met with derision and insults. Fear mongering was the phrase often used against us, and the saddest part about being right, is that it does not necessarily make one happy.

There were many good times and I was blessed to have, for the most part, a wonderful group of national leaders who constituted our board of governors. These men and women shared values and understood the need to transform B’nai Brith from what it once was, (a wonderful collection of lodges that did and continue to provide great programming), to a dynamic voice in advocacy both domestically and internationally.  The struggle for Soviet Jewry, Ethiopian Jewry, Argentine Jewry, as well as the fight for aboriginal rights in Canada, the Vietnamese boat people, the redress of the Japanese community in Canada and the Chinese head tax were all causes that B’nai Brith championed.

The meetings with prime ministers, presidents, a king and queen, multitudes of cabinet ministers and ambassadors, have always been instrumental in helping to advance the causes that were so critical for the Jewish people. On a personal note, these were very humbling experiences for me.

At the same time, the organization provided vitally necessary social services to the underprivileged members of our community.

There were the exciting years, when the Canada Israel Committee was truly representative of the cross section of the organization and its personalities.  The debates were loud, but it was a pleasure to hear the articulation of positions and to arrive at consensus.  Canadian Jewish Congress, B’nai Brith Canada, and the Canadian Zionist Federation all played major roles in helping to bring about a unified Jewish position.

I also, sadly, witnessed the demise of many organizations and was disheartened that voices that offered so much no longer exist.  The numerous vibrant groups that once made up the constituency of the Canadian Zionist Federation have mostly disappeared. The Zionist youth groups, once an integral component of our national mosaic, for the most part, do not exist.  The ideological debates which helped motivate these young people no longer take place.  On the other hand, I have seen tremendous growth in schools and communal institutions, and positive new directions by synagogues providing a multitude of programming.

I take great pride in the knowledge that B’nai Brith has fulfilled a major component in Jewish life, caring for those less fortunate.  Our B’nai Brith affordable housing units, which offer magnificent accommodations for those below the poverty line, are examples of the dedication and commitment of loyal B’nai Brith members, while our Bogoroch Family Senior drop-in centre constitutes a vital reason for so many of our elderly community to come out daily and enjoy a meal together and much needed socialization.

I can proudly say that it has always been a personal honour to attend the numerous functions at the seniors homes and to say a few words, in Yiddish, Hebrew and English and, very often, to be approached by individuals who bless me because their lives have been enhanced every day, thanks to what B’nai Brith has done.

Today, B’nai Brith has taken up a new challenge, and that is to find some relief and comfort for those afflicted with Alzheimer’s and, thus, as I look back on my accomplishments and achievements, I think of both the advocacy and the social services that have been an integral component of the day-to-day work.  My team of professionals, with whom I served over the years, has been the best in Canadian-Jewish communal life.

As I look to the future of the community, I am confident a new leadership will take the helm of the organization to new heights professionally, and at the lay level in B’nai Brith, a leadership that will continue the tradition of responsible activism.  We, in the Jewish community, have been blessed, very blessed.  Today, Canadian Jews live in the golden age of our history and this is due, in large measure, to the wonderful example set by our esteemed prime minister, Stephen Harper.  The enemies, however, continue to grow as Canadians are now serving with terrorist organizations overseas and, as more and more radicalization takes place in this country, we can never become complacent.  We must never fool ourselves into a false sense of security.  

Recent events have demonstrated the heightened provocation of pro-Islamic radicals in this country including physical attacks, an assault on the federation building in Montreal, and demonstrations in stores carrying Israeli products. This is all a foreshadowing of the future.  

We must take security more seriously and provide a venue in this country where there exist strong national organizations that may not always agree but that are funded efficiently and effectively so that all their voices can be heard.  Zev Jabotinsky was always inspirational and motivated me to persevere and engage in the necessary battles in defense of our people.  I hope that I have added one small footnote in the history of Canadian Jewry to help ensure its stability.

As I reflect on my wonderful years in communal work, I am thankful to my family for their unwavering support of my work and their positive participation in many of the endeavours.  Their encouragement was the spirit that enabled me to continue, often against adverse circumstances.  I am hopeful that the future of Jewish life in Israel and around the world will be filled with the Peace that we so richly deserve.

As we approach the High Holiday season, on behalf of myself and my family, I wish the community a year of Peace, Joy and Happiness.

 

Frank Dimant is CEO of B’nai Brith Canada. He is stepping down on Dec. 31, 2014 after 36 years.