Another pro-Hamas rally in Calgary?
...Muslim Council of Calgary chairman Nagah Hage exhorted his flock of 175, including infants and teens, in both Arabic and English. Between the tirades that demonized Israel, comparing Jews to the Nazis, Hage whipped up the crowd by calling the Jewish state "barbaric, ruthless and arrogant" and led the crowd in a chant that said: "Olmert-Hitler, you're the same, the only difference is the name."
The demonization of Israel was portrayed in venomous placards and banners carried by children and parents. Israel was accused of "ethnic cleansing", "committing a holocaust", and of "outright murder". There were even swastikas on display...
I am sure this anti-Semitic chorus was loud enough to be heard across the street at the Calgary Jewish Centre. The most egregious placard of all equated Jews with Nazis--a disgusting display anytime, but particularly tasteless, given that the Jewish community's Holocaust memorial was a block away.
They chanted: "Stephen Harper, hear us say, Jerusalem will be ours one day." In other words, the rally really wasn't about Gaza -- it was about Hamas's stated plans to conquer Israel.
...When the crowd approached the Israel supporter a second time, eight police officers had to stand in front of him to protect him. So the crowd went back to chanting "killers of children and women"--and they didn't mean Hamas, who use civilians as human shields.For two full hours this disgrace continued--all on the mall's private property. Parking and business access was blocked, and many customers were clearly repelled by the Nazi symbols on the crowd's posters, and the chants. When one shop owner asked the police to clear the crowd because customers couldn't reach her shop, the response was "they would leave it alone and let it play out", as it was the "lesser of two evils".
Some
of the mob didn't just go to the mall. They actually had the temerity
to park at the Calgary Jewish Centre --adjacent to the Holocaust
memorial there--despite the private parking sign.
I understand that the same anti-Semites are planning to return to Glenmore Landing today for a repeat of their hate-fest.
Glenmore Landing is owned by RioCan. It's private property. Like most businesses, it invites the public onto their property -- anyone can come onto the mall and it's not trespassing. But such an implied invitation is not unconditional; the invitation is to come shop, not to block the mall, impede commerce, harass Jewish shopkeepers and Jewish patrons, and generally bring a taste of Gaza to Calgary. Just like a movie theatre having the right to refund your ticket and kick you out for being too noisy, RioCan has the right to bar those who would come onto its private property for inappropriate reasons. Comparing Jews to Nazis -- and harassing patrons -- is an inappropriate reason.
I wonder if RioCan will exercise its property rights and keep the Hamas supporters out. I wonder if the police will honour such a request if RioCan makes it. And I wonder how long Canadians will accept terrorist flags being flown in our city streets, rabbis being spat at, pro-Israel supporters assaulted, and anti-Semitic bigotry being chanted, like it was 1930s Germany. All of that happened last week at Glenmore Landing, with impunity. Will it happen again today?
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