One of the toughest problems I faced in the last 4 years was that I was shunned by the major Jewish organizations and the civil rights organizations and authors' rights organizations.   This was a rude shock to me at the time.   

I may or may not provide more information about which organizations shunned me, but I do want to explain why it is so important for all of us to support each other in this war against our way of life.

The main thing that we must recognize is the motivation behind those who would censor our freedom of expression.   The motivation is to have the West submit to Islam.   Understanding that is the essence of understanding that the West must be uniform in its defence of freedom of expression.   Accordingly, Robert Tracinski, writing in The Intellectual Activist, calls on every publisher to rally around the Danish newspaper by publishing the cartoons themselves:

“This is not merely a symbolic expression of support; it is a practical countermeasure against censorship. Censorship—especially the violent, anarchic type threatened by Muslim fanatics—is effective only when it can isolate a specific victim, making him feel as if he alone bears the brunt of the danger. What intimidates an artist or writer is not simply some Arab fanatic in the street carrying a placard that reads "Behead those who insult Islam." What intimidates him is the feeling that, when the beheaders come after him, he will be on his own, with no allies or defenders—that everyone else will be too cowardly to stick their necks out.

“The answer, for publishers, is to tell the Muslim fanatics that they can't single out any one author, or artist, or publication. The answer is to show that we're all united in defying the fanatics.

“That's what it means to show "solidarity" by re-publishing the cartoons. The message we need to send is: if you want to kill anyone who publishes those cartoons, or anyone who makes cartoons of Mohammed, then you're going to have to kill us all. If you make war on one independent mind, you're making war on all of us. And we'll fight back.”

Alas, Mr. Tracinski’s call fell on deaf ears.  Most newspapers refrained from publishing any of the cartoons.   We should be very careful.   Our precious freedom of expression is like a tall tree.   Although its roots are deep, each successful attack on it represents another blow of a sharp axe to the base of the tree: too many blows of the axe will eventually bring it down.  And when that tree comes down, how long before someone starts chopping at the next tree in our forest of fundamental freedoms?   

And so, dear readers, this ties us into the story of Ezra Levant who, in his now-defunct Western Standard magazine had the courage to do what Mr. Tracinski advocated, and has paid a terrible price for it.   That is why we must all support Mr. Levant, and why none of us, must be made to feel that we are isolated and on our own agains this enemy of freedom.

A huge problem that I had for many many months after Chapters in a press release said that I made "racist" statements,was the following:   Chapters refused to put in writing just what I am alleged to have said to justify their actions of calling me a “racist”, etc.  They refused to do this, even though the Court ordered them to disclose this by a certain date, which they failed to do, and I had to push them in the court proceedings to finally release the written statements of the employee or employees upon which they based their press release.   The obvious reason that they refused for so long was that in fact I did not say anything at all “racist”.  In addition, they made the allegation BEFORE they had any written statements at all - they were in such a rush to submit to the Islamist intimidation of an 18 year old part time employee.  My biggest problem then was in this Orwellian world I was fighting against an allegation which, although made, and which, while extremely prejudicial in this cultural climate, did not even have to be disclosed to me.  It is almost a secret trial, where Judge Heather Reisman  decided I am a racist, and the entire Jewish community, and civil rights community, and the intellectual Left, are prepared to accept that. With very few exceptions (the wonderful Canadian Coalition for Democracies, and the Mackenzie Institute) I couldn't  get any organization to help fight this “chilling” McCarthyism of the Left.

I fear that this is in fact a type of McCarthyism where instead of witchhunts against Communist sympathizers, we are out to shun Israel sympathizers, and anyone who dares voice concern over cultural problems in the Arab world, especially in radical Islam.   It is hard enough to exercise freedom of speech when your “unpopular” opinions expose you to physical intimidation, but when you can’t get any backing or support, it becomes a “martyr’s” game.

For a long time I tried to get the Waterloo police department to charge the Islamist hecklers who broke up the lecture, with "causing a disturbance".   I wasn't asking them to charge them with a hate crime, although it would have been appropriate.  I thought causing a disturbance would be an easy charge to make stick.   Not only did they refuse, one detective eventually told me to stop bothering them, or she might charge me! (with what, I don't know)

I thought if I could get Canadian Jewish Congress or the Wiesenthal Centre to make a formal request to lay charges, the police might take this more seriously.    I was so disappointed that none of them would pick up the phone or send a letter or email, I was quoted in the Canadian Jewish News stating the obvious - that it would have helped if some Jewish organization had been willing to help.  Ths statement obviously irked Bernie Farber the Executive Director of the Canadian Jewish Congress, so he decided to put me in my place:   he said he had no idea what happened at the Chapters (although I offered him sworn affidavits from witnesses) and that he had "every confidence" in the Waterloo Police Department.   That kind of despicable attitude reminded me of the Jewish Councils during the Holocaust.

I feel that only now, after 4 years, with the trial upcoming, and the country waking up to the "lawfare" against Levant and Steyn, are people waking up to what happened to me, and what it means.   The internet is a big help when established media (even the National Post) wouldn't cover the story.

One other problem is that certain Jews who own or manage big media or bookstores, live with a pathetic attitude of fear that anti-Semites will see them as proof that the Jews control the media, or this or that.   Submitting to your anti-semitic critics is a pitiful sight, and one wonders what good all the money, prestige and power is doing, if they have to be so fearful and so submissive.

If you look at the written statement of Ms. Al-Halimi, it is quite clear that allegations of racism are used as a weapon against those who are firstly, perceived to hold the "wrong" opinion about some ideological, political, or religious issue, and, secondly, are in a position of greater (perceived) power, since "racism" has been redefined by some evil academics as relating only to those situations where there is a power differential.

Here, again is the written statement of Al-Halimi, and notice how little it has to do with the facts, and how much it has to do with what she thinks I must think of her.

Read this carefully, as it tells us a lot about what are we are facing when Canada's monopoly book retailer puts enough confidence in this statement to ban my books.  And note how she ends her rant with the chilling lines that what I must have thought about her amounts to "racism at its worst".....You can imagine how I feel, when I lost my grandparents and aunt to the gas chambers for the crime of being Jewish, that I now find out that what I did at Chapters was in fact "racism at its worst" by this young girl but more importantly by Canada's monopoly book retailer.   And note please that I in no way said "All Middle Eastern people are terrorists" or anything close to that.   And note the irony that my novel is about a professor who gets in trouble after giving a lecture:


“ I went to see the author signing fifteen minutes into it and when I got closer to the area, I heard voices that became louder and louder.  I saw two people in the audience, one calmly stating basic facts to the author, the other yelling out, ‘What are you … a f***ing Jew?’ only to have the author yell back, ‘A f***ing Jew?  This only proves that Middle Eastern people are terrorists.’  From there the yelling progressed, eventually reaching a point where the managers asked the audience members to leave, and the author gave up and stepped into their office.

“For a person to come into my workplace and insult and judge me in such a manner without him knowing anything about me is absurd.   According to him, when walking down the street, I should be avoided at all times because my skin is darker and I wear a headscarf.  I am aware that the man in the audience should not have cursed at all given the atmosphere. Nonetheless, the author, as a professional and as a representative of what books the company holds should have controlled himself against saying such piercing words.  It was uncalled for, rude and worst of all it was racial discrimination.

“What frustrates me most about this whole scenario is the fact that both customers and employees alike had to witness something so hateful towards those of Middle Eastern descent.  At one of the most difficult times to be of a visible minority for Arab and Muslim people, it was completely unjust for him to generalize the way that he did.  I also noticed that he kept repeating the word ‘they’ and ‘them’ like we were some vicious robots that act, think and speak alike with one brain. Even if it was for a split second that someone looked at me and thought, ‘So she’s a terrorist?’ that is one split second too much.  I have never in my life done anything to intentionally hurt anyone, and to be accused of being one that intentionally inflicts pain upon others is hurtful and untrue.  It seems as if my genetic makeup caused him to automatically make an unfair assumption.  And that is racism at its worst.”

- Written statement of Raneem Al-Halimi, part time employee at Waterloo Chapters.