Jian Ghomeshi is hip host of the popular CBC radio morning program “Q.” On May 6, 2013, he will MC a fundraiser for the Canadian Friends of Hebrew University (CFHU) fundraiser and tribute to actor Morgan Freeman. The Hebrew University is partially constructed on land confiscated in the 1960s from Palestinians, when Israel sought to illegally annex East Jerusalem. By participating with this fundraiser, Ghomeshi normalizes Israel’s annexation of Palestinian land. Jian Ghomeshi should not associate himself with the Israeli occupation.

Since the Spring 2012, Palestinian prisoners have increasingly protested the abusive conditions they face in Israeli jails. Add your voice to theirs!

Canadians who want to influence Liberal Party policy have a great opportunity to do so through the party's 2013 leadership race. Get involved now!

Thursday, Nov. 29th, the UN voted to upgrade Palestine’s UN status to that of “observer state.” The vote passed with a lot of international support, but Canada voted against. CJPME vehemently disagrees with the Harper government’s UN vote, considering it unjustifiable, and shameful.

CJPME deplores Israel’s violation Nov. 14th of the ceasefire brokered 24 hours earlier by Egypt. On that day, Israel launched at least 20 airstrikes on Gaza, injuring about 120 Palestinians, and killing 10, including a baby and a 7-year old. CJPME is concerned with the ongoing lack of respect for human rights of Palestinians, and the status quo of asymmetrical violence.

On May 31st, pro-Israel lobby B’nai Brith issued a press release putting NDP MP Megan Leslie under harsh pressure for supporting Halifax Israel Apartheid Week, and for referring to the “illegal occupation” of the Palestinians. CJPME encourages Canadians to let the NDP know of their support for Leslie’s stand on social justice for the Palestinians.

As of mid-May, the violence from the Assad regime and opposition forces in Syria continued to get worse. In late March, the UN approved a plan to place international observers in Syria to help put a ceasefire in place. As long as the UN Envoy Kofi Annan and his observers are willing to persevere, CJPME encourages Canada and rest of the international community to support this effort to stop the violence.

On May 1, the United Church of Canada’s Working Group on Israel/Palestine Policy issued a report recommending that the church boycott Israeli settlement products. This is an extremely significant step for the boycott initiative in Canada, and must be encouraged.

Please join the effort to help counter the pressure being applied on CBS News by Israel, and by the pro-Israel lobby in North America. Take 30 seconds to help embolden CBS News to continue to report openly and factually about the Middle East.

In response to federal cut in funding to the organization Palestine House - which has projects promoting Canadian democratic values, along with language integration for new immigrants to Canada - CJPME alerted its supporters to the need to take action to ensure that such work is not excluded from Canadian government funding.

The Palestinians are going to the UN to request admission as a member. Whether admitted as an observer state, or as a member state, this move has important implications and must be supported.

Canadians convinced that Canada must do its part to challenge Israel’s illegal and cruel blockade of Gaza have organized a project to send a Canadian boat to join Freedom Flotilla II’s joint voyage to Gaza. Canada’s foreign minister John Baird criticized the flotilla, and all but invited the Israeli military to attack it. CJPME has provided information and electronic tools enabling Canadians to take action to express their support of the Boat, and to demand that Canadian politicians speak up in defence of these courageous activists.

IKEA has continued to deliver items to residents of Jewish-only colonies that Israel has illegally built in the Palestinian territories it militarily occupies; meanwhile, it chooses not to deliver to the West Bank’s Palestinians. Duran Duran is scheduled to play in Tel Aviv on July 30: its presence will send the wrong message to Israelis and their government about the acceptability of Israel’s conduct. CJPME has alerted its supporters to the need to express their opinions to both IKEA and Duran Duran.

CJPME took the initiative to send fresh and concise information to all of the federal MPs. This will ensure that even the 111 new MPs will be able be well informed on the various latest Middle East developments that will merit their attention in the coming months.

As a result of pressure from the pro-Israel lobby in 2009-10, Toronto City Council ordered staff to assess whether the use of the term “Israeli apartheid” violated the City’s Anti-Discrimination Policy. When the staff report concluded that it did not, CJPME directly urged Council’s Executive Committee to adopt the report, and alerted CJPME supporters to the need to express their concerns to all Council members. On June 15, after receiving hundreds of messages from CJPME supporters and other concerned citizens, the Councillors adopted the report, thereby upholding free expression.

When a Markham City councillor introduced a motion demonizing “Israeli Apartheid Week” activities on campuses attended by Markham students, CJPME took action. It alerted its supporters about the need to protect freedom of expression. It also sent a representative to a City Council meeting to provide balanced information about the issues raised by the councillor’s motion.

With federal elections approaching, and in view of counter-productive shifts in Canadian Middle East policy under PM Stephen Harper, CJPME issued a 2011 Elections Guide. The guide provided readers with CJPME’s assessments of the stances of the political parties and individual MPs on Middle East issues, as well as information on “swing” ridings. This information enabled voters—regardless of the circumstances in their particular riding—to support candidates more likely to contribute to peace in the Middle East.

“Toys R Us” is operated by Super-Pharm Israel, which has large investments in Israel’s illegal Jewish-only colonies in the West Bank; it also sells Israeli products in its stores worldwide. Les Ballets Jazz de Montréal (BJM) was scheduled to play June 1-7 in Israel. CJPME provided Canadians with information and electronic tools enabling them to communicate clearly and quickly their concerns about both “Toys R Us” and BJM.

Under pressure by a pro-Israel fringe group, the Hamilton YWCA imposed onerous security charges not originally agreed to. CJPME alerted its members to the need to take action to defend Canadians’ right to express and hear critical assessments of Israel’s conduct. Their actions obliged the YWCA to withdraw its onerous requirement, and the CJPME event took place as planned.

In response to lobbying by a pro-Israel fringe group, Hamilton’s Mohawk College tried to impose onerous last minute charges for security services that CJPME had neither requested nor needed for a lecture by US scholar Norman Finkelstein. CJPME alerted its supporters about the need to take action to oppose this attempt to squelch freedom of expression on Israel’s conduct. The resulting publicity doubled the size of the audience that attended Dr. Finkelstein’s relocated lecture.

Ahava is a skin care product company owned by two illegal Israeli colonies in the West Bank; its products incorporate ingredients stolen from Palestinian land adjacent to the Dead Sea. French pop singer Vanessa Paradis had planned to perform in Israel on Feb. 10, despite its human rights abuses and violation of international law. CJPME provided information and electronic tools enabling Canadians to raise their voices against the “normalization” of Israel’s rogue conduct. As a result, Ahava products were removed from The Bay shelves, and Paradis cancelled her concert.

CJPME delegates met with 11 federal MPs to discuss Canada’s policy on Gaza and Canada’s loss of international stature due to its inappropriate stances on the Middle East. Delegates ensured that MPs realized that their stances matter and would be recalled at election time. MPs expressed their appreciation of CJPME’s high-quality documentation, and of the fact that CJPME was now also issuing useful information about a full range of Middle East countries.

In Oct., Nov. and Dec., CJPME analyzed Canada’s Middle East policy and its impact on Canada’s lost UN Security Council seat bid in Oct. Issuing multiple factsheets and position papers, CJPME demonstrated how Canada’s credibility in the international community has been severely diminished because of its imbalance on Middle East issues. In Dec., 2010 and Jan. 2011, CJPME met with over 50 MPs and Senators, as well as senior bureaucrats to discuss this troubling tendency, and its long-term ramifications.

Since 2006, Canada had taken a very dogmatic approach to Gaza – giving precedence to an anti-Hamas policy vs. the social and humanitarian needs of the people of Gaza. In this campaign, CJPME demonstrated that there are other approaches to the impasse on Gaza, where Canada could play a constructive role despite differences with Hamas. CJPME articulated these alternatives in new position papers – along with various factsheets, new and old – which were delivered and explained to dozens of policymakers across the political spectrum in Dec. 2010 and Jan. 2011.

In Nov. 2010, CJPME officially launched its “We’re not buying it” Boycott Israel Centre. The Centre was months in the making, and involves a broad variety of tools to enable Canadians with little time to participate in the boycott. The Centre was launched in response to the call by 170 organizations from Palestinian civil society asking for an international boycott of Israel. The Centre identifies boycott targets, both consumer and cultural, and in each case provides the justification for the boycott. The Centre also provides letters, email tools, and other resources to provide widespread participation by Canadians.

When Israel cut off international postal service to Gaza in late July, and Canada Post announced in August that it was no longer accepting mail destined for Gaza, CJPME issued a press release condemning Israel’s actions. Shortly after, when plans were announced for a Canadian boat to Gaza that would carry postcards there, CJPME backed the Canada Boat to Gaza project.

Over the summer, CJPME issued various urgent action alerts to its supporters to press performing artists, such as Rod Stewart, Missy Elliot, and Suzanne Vega, to cancel their current Israeli concert dates. CJPME also sent letters with information packages to various performing artists who were being solicited to perform in Israel. CJPME also issued an action alert thanking Elvis Costello for cancelling his Israeli concert date, and for being so open about the reasons for it.

In June, Libby Davies’ rivals in other parties and within the NDP excoriated her for an impolitic comment she made when flustered during an amateur interview. Liberal MP Bob Rae and the Conservatives called on NDP Leader Jack Layton to remove her from her post as Deputy Leader. CJPME issued an action alert, a press release and wrote to Layton urging him to keep Ms. Davies as Deputy Leader.

When Israeli forces conducted a violent raid on the Gaza aid flotilla to enforce their illegal blockade of Gaza, CJPME issued an action alert that resulted in thousands of Canadians urging Canadian Prime Minister Steven Harper to condemn the raid. CJPME sent a message to its entire list providing six ways Canadians could help Gaza, and providing talking points to help them raise this matter with the media and their MPs.

When the Israeli PM – an individual accused of war crimes – arrived in Canada, CJPME sent out an urgent action urging Canadians to speak with their feet and get out to the protests being coordinated by other organizations in Toronto, Ottawa and Montreal. Many responded, and the demonstrations let Netanyahu and the Canadian government know that Canadians won’t tolerate violations of human rights and international law.

In early 2010 it became apparent that those controlling the CPCCA were using the spectre of renewed anti-Semitism as a pretext to muzzle Israel’s Canadian critics, especially on university campuses. CJPME then urged its supporters to call upon NDP MPs to withdraw from the CPCCA, as Bloc MPs had.

In response to a motion in the Manitoba legislature to condemn Israeli Apartheid Week, CJPME alerted its supporters to the need to let that provinces’s MLAs know that Manitobans value their right to freedom of expression, including their right to criticise Israel’s human rights record and its violations of international law.

In response to federal stalling on renewal of funding to the NGO Alternatives—which has projects promoting democratic values and sustainable development in the Occupied Palestinian Territories and other places—CJPME alerted its supporters to the need to take action to ensure that such work is not excluded from Canadian development assistance.

CJPME alerted its supporters to the federal government’s decision to cut funding to KAIROS, and its false allegations that the organization was anti-Semitic. KAIROS is an ecumenical social justice group working on issues of climate change, international trade and foreign policy. It has also been supportive of Palestinian human and humanitarian rights.

Over the course of 2009 and early 2010, the Canadian federal government sought to discredit and replace the leadership of the Rights and Democracy Centre, which had supported the awarding of grants to NGOs researching human rights abuses in Gaza. CJPME informed its supporters of the need to take action to halt such meddling in the prestigious institution.

When Conservative MP Tim Uppal’s motion against Israeli Apartheid Week was announced, CJPME alerted Canadians that their right to publicly criticize Israel’s violations of human rights and international law was on the line, and that Uppal’s motion was based on erroneous information.

CJPME organized a Canadian tour of Nobel Peace Prize nominee and democracy activist Dr. Mustafa Barghouti in March 2010. When Canadian visa officials failed to issue the visa, despite promises to the contrary for weeks on end, CJPME alerted its supporters to this case of “censorship by administrative foot-dragging.” Barghouti received his visa in time for the tour rescheduled for May.

In January 2010, CJPME launched an exhibit of photos documenting the human tragedy caused by Israel’s 22-day assault on Gaza the year prior and the international blockade in effect since 2006. CJPME countered a campaign to have the exhibit closed down with a campaign of its own to keep it open, and won.

When the Canadian government announced it was restricting aid to the UNRWA—the agency that millions of Palestinian refugees in Gaza are forced to rely on for education, health care and food—CJPME alerted Canadians to that injustice, and what it boded for Canadian foreign policy vis-à-vis the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

CJPME campaigned for the Canadian government to live up to its commitments under international law to treat child soldiers—including Omar Khadr—differently than it would treat adult enemy combatants. CJPME’s campaign called for Canada to repatriate Khadr, as other governments have done with their citizens detained in Guantánamo.

When Canadians wanting to commemorate the first anniversary of Israel’s brutal 22-day assault on Gaza headed to the Middle East for the Gaza Freedom March, the Egyptian government blocked their entry to Gaza. CJPME alerted Canadians to the need to pressure Egypt to respect Canadians’ right to express their solidarity with Palestinians.

In response to a campaign by the Canadian Jewish Congress, the BC Minister of Education agreed to delete a reference to Palestinians from an online practice test for Grace 12 students, although the reference was accurate. CJPME campaigned against such academic dishonesty.

Accused of murder in a school-yard brawl in Saudi Arabia and sentenced to death, Canadian Mohammed Kohail's trial in Saudi Arabia was marred by numerous irregularities. CJPME alerted its supporters to the need to take prompt action to avert Kohail’s execution and to ensure a fair trial.

When Al Jazeera television channel’s English service applied for a license to broadcast in Canada, CJPME informed the public of the advantages of having access to a broader range of news about the Middle East. The campaign was successful and Al Jazeera’s English service began broadcasting in Canada in May 2010.

The CJPME urged its supporters to call upon the Royal Ontario Museum to correct incomplete information accompanying its exhibit of the Dead Sea Scrolls, and to recognize the Palestinian role in the scrolls’ discovery and preservation.

In March 2009, a Canadian judge backed a Canadian Border Service Agency’s decision to deny entry to British MP George Galloway, scheduled to give a talk in Toronto. CJPME urged its supporters to defend their right to hear Galloway’s opinions on the war in Afghanistan and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

In March 2010, federal officials announced that contracts to fund the Canadian Arab Federation (CAF) English classes for immigrants would not be renewed. Immigration Minister Jason Kenney then publicly implied that the CAF was anti-Semitic and soft on terrorism. CJPME alerted Canadians to the dangers of such spurious allegations and urged its supporters to raise their voices against this smear of an important organization representing Arab-Canadians.

In November 2008, long-time Israeli Medical Association President Yoram Blachar became president of the World Medical Association, despite having previously defended the use of “moderate physical pressure” — a euphemism for torture—in the interrogation of Palestinian prisoners within Israel. CJPME alerted Canadians of the need for the Canadian Medical Association to oppose his presidency.

CJPME urged Canadians to show appreciation for the Bloc Quebecois’ principled press statement concerning Israel’s recent assault on Gaza.

CJPME urged Canadians to call upon all Canadian political parties to more strongly oppose Israel’s brutal assault on Gaza. CJPME called attention to Israel’s disproportionate use of force, its use of illegal weapons, and the extremely high civilian death toll.

When Canadian officials echoed the Israeli government’s allegations that its brutal assault on Gaza was a defensive action, CJPME alerted its supporters to the need to demand a Canadian response based on Canadian values, and respect for human rights and international law.

In late 2008 the Canadian government appeared to be waffling on ratification of a treaty to prohibit the use and stockpiling of cluster munitions. The Treaty also committed signatories to assist in clearing areas containing unexploded cluster bombs, e.g. Lebanon. CJPME alerted Canadians about the urgency of insisting that their government support the ban on these lethal and inaccurate weapons, which pose particular dangers to civilians, especially children.

During the 2008 federal elections, Liberal MP Ken Dryden urged that all aid to Gaza be cut. Stephane Dion, then Liberal leader, did not counter Dryden’s call. CJPME urged its supporters to call upon the Liberal Party to base its Middle East policy on facts and to bring it into line with the Canadian values of fairness to all parties to a conflict and respect for the rule of law.

CJPME encouraged its supporters to place Canada’s Middle East policy on the electoral agenda by sending questions to an email set up for that purpose by the CBC. In this way, CJPME hoped to bring attention to its issues during the televised national debates of the 2008 federal election campaign.

In May 2008, Israeli Ambassador to Canada Alan Baker made public comments implying that Muslims made less suitable immigrants to Canada than people of other backgrounds. CJPME alerted its supporters to the racist underpinnings of Baker’s comments and urged them to call on Canadian MPs to reject Baker’s assumptions and fear-mongering.

CJPME reminded its supporters that the Canadian government had not followed up on the recommendations of the Canadian Forces Board of Inquiry report regarding the death of a Canadian UN peace keeper in Lebanon. Paeta Hess-Von Krudener was killed by an Israeli attack in Lebanon using laser-guided weapons, apparently deliberately targeting the UN bunker. The Canadian Forces Board of Inquiry report concluded that the attack was preventable, and that Israel bore responsibility.

In March, 2008, Israeli attacks in Gaza residential areas resulted in the death of over 110 Palestinian civilians, including over 20 children. CJPME asked its constituents to call for a Canadian condemnation of these attacks, and their illegal, reckless and inhumane nature.

In early 2008, Canada was the only country on the UN Human Rights Council.that voted against a motion calling for an end to Israel’s blockade of Gaza. Thirty other countries voted for the resolution, and 15 abstained. CJPME alerted Canadians to this alarming development, urging them to express their displeasure with Canada’s stance.