• News
    • Business
    • Canada
    • Health
    • International
    • Israel
  • Perspectives
    • Advice
    • Big Ideas
    • CJN Podcast Network
    • Features
    • Opinions
  • Food
  • Culture
    • Arts & Entertainment
    • Books & Authors
    • Russian
    • Sports
    • Travel
  • Events
    • Contests
    • Montreal – About Town
    • Toronto – What’s New
  • Supplements
    • Spotlights
  • En Français
  • Podcasts
  • Subscribe
  • Member Centre
  • Log Out
Search
  • Subscribe
  • Member Centre (eCJN)
  • Log Out
  • Newsletter
  • FaceBook
  • Twitter
  • Youtube
  • Instagram
CJN - Canada’s largest Jewish newspaper
March 6, 2021 - 22 Adar 5781
CJN - Canada’s largest Jewish newspaper
  • News
    • The race to be the leader of the Conservative Party

      Q & A with Ari Greenwald: Responding to a pandemic

      Israel declares complete coronavirus lockdown on eve of Passover

      Gantz says forming a unity government may take more time

      Students learn computer programming RHA FACEBOOK PHOTO

      Online classes up and running in Vancouver

      AllBusinessCanadaHealthInternationalIsrael
  • Perspectives
    • A Long-Awaited Return, feat. Jody Avirgan

      To our readers: Everything has its season. It is time

      Listen: The CJN Podcast Network, Signing Off

      Healthy Aging: Your next doctor appointment will likely be virtual

      Shinewald: Making this awful moment more tolerable

      AllAdviceBig IdeasCJN Podcast NetworkFeaturesOpinions
  • Food
    • Delicious desserts for Passover

      Festive food for small seders

      Passover meals for the whole day

      Passover taco Tuesday

      Family Seder recipes

  • Culture
    • How philosophy and theology can be in dialogue together

      Socalled is trying to make the best of his downtime

      Veteran singer returns with ‘toxic’ single

      Stories explore relationships between family, friends

      Jewish movies you should stream while self-isolating

      AllArts & EntertainmentBooks & AuthorsRussianSportsTravel
  • Events
    • CJN VIP

      How’d you like to be a VIP? Giveaway

      Giveaway: The Song of Names advance screenings contest (CLOSED)

      CJN-Prize-new-Entry Ad 2019

      The CJN Prize 2019 (Closed)

      Come celebrate the launch of the CJN Podcast Network

      Jewish Music Week Contest (Closed)

      AllContestsMontreal – About TownToronto – What’s New
  • Supplements
    • Passover Greetings

      Focus-on-Ed-2020

      Focus on Education

      Celebrations-MS-20

      Celebrations

      Hanukkah Greetings

      Celebrations

      AllSpotlights
  • En Français
    • À la mémoire d’un ardent ambassadeur de la culture sépharade, Solly Levy Z.’L.’

      “La haine des Juifs n’a jamais eu de limite”

      Le dossier du Dr. Marcus Fraenkel: la réponse de la CIVS

      Israéliens et Palestiniens luttent ensemble contre le coronavirus

      La lutte contre le coronavirus au Centre médical Sheba de Ramat Gan

  • Podcasts
  • Subscribe
  • Member Centre
  • Log Out
Home News Canada Hillel cancels talk by controversial aboriginal Zionist
  • News
  • Canada
  • Featured
  • Jewish Learning

Hillel cancels talk by controversial aboriginal Zionist

By
Janice Arnold, Staff Reporter
-
March 23, 2015
11044
18
Ryan Bellerose speaks at the Canadian Institute for Jewish Research, as its director, Frederick Krantz listens. JANICE ARNOLD PHOTO

MONTREAL  — Hillel Montreal is defending as a “principled stance” its late-hour decision to cancel a talk by assertive pro-Israel activist Ryan Bellerose of Calgary, which had been scheduled to take place at Concordia University on March 16.

Bellerose, who is also an activist for aboriginal rights, thinks the event was scrapped because some Israel advocacy groups, including the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs (CIJA) and “progressive Zionist” students, do not like his “in your face” approach to defending Israel. 

“I’m not a very PC guy,” said Bellerose, who did receive a platform to speak two days later at a private event organized by the Canadian Institute for Jewish Research (CIJR).

Hillel contends the reason was that Bellerose’s recent tweets, mostly to Hamas’ new Twitter account, and his response to those tweets on other social media, were not acceptable discourse.

Bellerose is a founder of Calgary United With Israel, which describes itself an independent grassroots group, largely composed of students, that was founded a couple of years ago. During the war in Gaza last summer, members attended a large anti-Israel outside Calgary City Hall that turned violent when pro-Gaza protesters attacked a small group of Israel supporters.

A similar group, Toronto-based StandWithUs Canada, sponsored Bellerose’s trip to Israel last year.

Bellerose, 40, a burly semi-professional football player and former oil-rig worker, was to have spoken on “How Being Indigenous to Canada Helps Me Understand the Middle East” at a widely publicized afternoon event sponsored by Hillel Concordia and Hillel McGill. He said he was informed by Hillel late the night before that it would not be taking place.

In an email to The CJN, Hillel Montreal executive director Jeff Bicher said that the “decision to cancel… came as a result of information received from students that many would consider mainstream pro-Israel activists.

“Hillel’s policy is to promote civil discourse, and we felt that his [Bellerose’s] discourse did not remain civil. I have read Mr. Bellerose’s tweets and, although some were written in tasteless humour, we were prepared to still have him share his experiences on campus. What led to this point was the way in which he chose to respond on the event Facebook page.

“Mr. Bellerose crossed the line in many students’ eyes, and ours.”

On March 15, Bellerose retweeted a photo to #AskHamas of two young boys apparently choking as they are hung by the collars of their T-shirts to a railing by a man, with the caption: “Do you put children out to dry??”

Among a series of tweets by Bellerose to #AskHamas the day before were: “What do you plan to do about the lack of women in Gaza, buy more goats or buy more sheep?” and “How much it cost [sic] to convert your terror tunnels into sewers, after all they are filled with sewage anyway?”

In its announcement of the event’s cancellation, Hillel posted on Facebook: “Although much of what Ryan Bellerose espouses with respect to indigenous people and Israel resonates with our community, some of his messages are clearly not in line with Hillel or Concordia… It is unfortunate that at this late stage we are forced to cancel the event, but Hillel Concordia cannot ignore some of Mr. Bellerose’s previous public comments that only came to our attention in the last few hours.”

After the cancellation of the event, a post appeared on Bellerose’s Facebook page from “an admin” that he or she “believe[s] this was a case of character defamation.”

“If Hillel Montreal/Concordia really valued different ‘races and cultures’ as they state… they would value Native straightforward talk, which isn’t necessarily pillowed with flowers around the edges. Racist move in this admin’s opinion.”

Bicher denied allegations by some students and by Bellerose that certain left-wing Jewish students or CIJA, the advocacy partner of Federation CJA, which funds Hillel, put pressure on Hillel to pull the plug.

Bicher said many of the pro-Israel students who rallied to defeat the BDS motion put forward at the Students’ Society of McGill University general assembly on March 15 “were the same students who took issue with Mr. Bellerose’s behaviour. I am happy to note that their barometer was right on…

“We recognize that some may take issue with this principled stance. We are comforted though by the plethora of messages from pro-Israel activists, on campus and around the world, commending Hillel Montreal, Hillel McGill and Hillel Concordia, for doing what was right.”

CIJA didn't offer an opinion on the cancellation.

"We recognize Ryan as a sincere, passionate supporter of Israel – who sees many parallels between the Jewish experience as an aboriginal people and his own community of First Nations," said CIJA spokesperson Eta Yudin. "Our approach to the specific issues and participation in the public policy debate – whether on campus or the broader community – is very different, but we offer no specific comment on him."

Bellerose’s appearance was scheduled during the annual Israeli Apartheid Week at Concordia and McGill University. Among its events was a discussion at the Native Friendship Centre of Montreal on “Indigenous Resistance to Colonialism and Racism” which included Glen Coulthard, a member of Yellowknife’s Dene First Nation, and another featuring local Métis artist Moe Clark.

In his March 18 talk at CIJR, Bellerose avoided the issue until it was raised by the audience. He said he was angry and feels he was “smeared a little bit”, especially by those who contend he is “anti-feminist.”

His message to CIJR was that natives and Jews are both indigenous peoples, who are fighting for their ancestral land and that they both face insurmountable prejudice from “white people.”

Many Jews, like aboriginals, are hampered by a “colonized mindset,” he said.

“They believe the best thing they can do is try to become whiter. We are conditioned to think that way… Jews are no different than Indians. They can never be fully white. Maybe they can be a step or two below… They won’t let you get to the top.”

Jews, wherever they live in the world today, are the indigenous people of the land of Israel, he said. Palestinians have human rights, but not to own that territory, he said. As Arabs, they are indigenous to the Arabian Peninsula, where Saudi Arabia is located, he believes.

The Arabs conquered Israel in the seventh century, he said, displacing Jews and others.

Bellerose, who grew up in the Métis settlement of Paddle Prairie in northern Alberta, was an organizer in the Idle No More movement. “I left when it became anti-Harper,” he said.

He contends that most Israel advocacy groups are too timid in their approach, and ceding ground to the “bullies.”

“Jews should not apologize for winning,” he said, and they should realize that other indigenous peoples look to them as an example of how to successfully return to their land. “It’s important to celebrate that victory.”

Bellerose admits that he sometimes gets aggressive, using his intimidating size, if he is offended by what someone says about Israel or Jews.

Bellerose is a contributor to a recent CIJR online publication entitled Zionism, An Indigenous Struggle: Aboriginal Americans and the Jewish State.

The article, co-authored with American Comanche activist David Yeagley who died last year, contends that other movements have tried to appropriate the oppression of Native Americans into their cause. 

Editor's note: this article has been changed since it was first posted to correct some errors of fact.

  • TAGS
  • Advocacy
  • Jewish Organisation
  • Students
  • University
Janice Arnold, Staff Reporter

RELATED ARTICLESMORE FROM AUTHOR

Helpard: Take a stand against anti-Israel groups on campus

Jewish groups urge Ontario students to opt out of union dues

Tytel: Leaving the nest for the first time

Subscribe to the CJNSubscribe
RSS FeedView
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Subscribe / Member Centre (eCJN)
  • eCJN Archives
  • Supplements
  • Media Kit
  • Advertising Terms
  • Premiums

PODCAST TRAILER: These Are a Few of My Favourite Jews

75th Anniversary - Liberation of Auschwitz

Ezer Mizion's 2019 Night Shuk

  • Canada
  • Israel
  • International
  • Opinions
  • Food
  • Culture
  • En Français
  • CJN Podcast Network
The award-winning Canadian Jewish News (CJN) is Canada’s largest, weekly Jewish newspaper with an audited circulation of nearly 32,000 and read by more than 100,000 people each week.
© 2021 Canadian Jewish News
  • Comments Policy
  • Community Links
  • Contact Us
  • Media Kit
  • Privacy Policy
  • Subscribe
  • Admin
 Tweet
 Share
 WhatsApp
 Copy
 E-mail
 Tweet
 Share
 WhatsApp
 Copy
 E-mail
 Tweet
 Share
 LinkedIn
 WhatsApp
 Copy
 E-mail