Is the City of Montreal doing enough to curb antisemitic violence on the island? Absolutely not.
At our December 9, 2024 meeting we adopted this resolution
WHEREAS since October 7, 2023, there have been more than 450 demonstrations in Montreal where the majority were related to the Middle East conflict;
WHEREAS there have been numerous acts of violence and hate crimes linked to these demonstrations, including on March 4, 2024, in front of the Federation CJA of Montreal, on September 30 in front of Concordia University and on November 5, 2024, in front of the Shaar Hashamayim synagogue;
WHEREAS during these demonstrations illegal behavior was observed, such as street blocking, graffiti on cars and buildings, or occupation of university areas, in addition to hateful and violent language;
WHEREAS the police are limited in their intervention by the fact that the demonstrators do not announce the exact location or itinerary of their march and demonstration, and are for the most part masked while uttering hateful language and engaging in intimidation;
WHEREAS it is the responsibility of the municipality to legislate laws and regulations on the prevention of disturbances of the peace, security and public order and on the use of public property, in order to facilitate the work of police officers in protecting participants and residents during demonstrations;
WHEREAS it is desirable to find concrete ways to better equip SPVM police officers to deal with these violent demonstrations, in order to protect public order and safety, as well as the rights and freedoms of participants and the general public;
WHEREAS in an interview on QUB radio on November 25, 2024, SPVM Police Chief Fady Dagher stated that law enforcement could be better managed with better technology, including body cameras and computer technology to retrieve all footage ;
WHEREAS ICI Radio-Canada published an article on November 28, 2024, in which Yves Francœur, President of the Montreal Police Brotherhood, explains that the City of Montreal has not presented legislative amendments to compensate and give new tools to the police since By-law P-6 was invalidated, and calls for demonstrators to be forced to be unmasked.
It was moved
"THAT the City Council of Côte Saint-Luc ask the Council of the Agglomeration of Montreal to adopt a by-law to ensure the peaceful and safe conduct of demonstrations, promoting the safety of all, participants and population included:
THAT, among other measures, this by-law should:
i) provide the police with the necessary tools to enforce the Criminal Code when demonstrations become illegal gatherings and;
ii) prohibit participants in such assemblies or demonstrations on the public domain from having their faces covered without reasonable cause, the whole according to prescribed criteria and conditions.”
