Toronto (September 20, 2019) – Friends of Simon Wiesenthal Center (FSWC) is once again calling for the Green Party to dismiss Dale Dewar, after the Regina candidate made further antisemitic remarks reported by news media.

FSWC called for Dewar’s removal from the Green Party last week after a series of antisemitic tweets were revealed in which she called Israel a “serial rapist” and Zionism a “made-up cult” and stated Israelis need “mental health workers” so that they can “get over” trauma caused by the Holocaust.  

In yesterday's story in the Regina Leader-Post, Dewar lashed out at FSWC, accusing the Center of taking her comments “out of context.” But while Dewar said she was sorry for the “inflammatory” tone of her previous remarks, the only comment she made that she said she regrets was calling Zionism a “made-up cult.” She clarified she should have instead called Zionism a “manufactured cult,” according to the Leader-Post.

Dewar reportedly went on to falsely accuse Israel of being a “colonialist” country and noted, as paraphrased by the Leader-Post, that “there are other genocides [besides the Holocaust] that get far less attention, such as the one that she said has affected North American Indigenous people.”

“It is absolutely outrageous to call Israel a colonial country, since Jews are indigenous to the land of Israel. More outrageous is Dewar’s audacity to seemingly play down the magnitude of the Holocaust,” said FSWC president and CEO Avi Benlolo. “It is now abundantly clear that Dewar intends to use her platform as a candidate for federal office in order to spread misinformation about the Jewish nation. We urgently call on Elizabeth May and other members of the Green Party leadership to reconsider this candidate.”

In June 2019, the Canadian government officially adopted the detailed definition of antisemitism endorsed by the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA). According to the IHRA, accusations that the Holocaust is exaggerated or overblown are by definition antisemitic. Also considered antisemitic are any claims that deny “the Jewish people their right to self-determination, e.g. by claiming that the existence of a State of Israel is a racist endeavor.”

Dale Dewar Statements: Myths and Facts

MYTH: Israel “picks on children”

FACT: Israel does not pick on children. It shares similar commonwealth laws as Canada. Unfortunately, children living in Gaza and West Bank are forced to train as soldiers in camps organized by Hamas, where they are taught to hate Israel and Jewish people. Terrorist groups use children as pawns in their war against Israel.

MYTH: “Zionism is a made-up cult”,“Zionism is a manufactured cult”

FACT: Zionism is a movement for national liberation, the desire for freedom and self determination in ones ancestral homeland. The roots of Zionism are ancient – dating back to the moment of Jewish exile from the land of Israel around 135 CE. For the next 1800 years, the wish to return to the Jewish homeland was demonstrated in daily prayers as well as important holiday rituals – Passover Seders would end with the expressed desire for “next year in Jerusalem.” Today, an overwhelming majority of Jews – including more than 90% of Israeli Jews – consider themselves Zionists.

MYTH: Israel is a “colonialist” country

FACT: A broad consensus in the fields of history, archaeology and genetics confirms that Jews are indigenous to the Southern Levant, the geographic area that includes what today is the State of Israel, the West Bank, and Southern Jordan. Jews have had an uninterrupted presence in the area for at least 2500 years. The language of Hebrew, the Torah, the Talmud, the Hebrew calendar and major Jewish holidays such as Shavuot all originated in Israel and revolve around its seasons.