Response from Jean Swanson & COPE

1.   No IHRA at Vancouver city council: 

A motion was submitted by Councillor Kirby-Yung on July 23, 2019 to adopt the anti-Palestinian definition of the “International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) definition of antisemitism”, which aims to silence criticism of Israel. The motion was not passed, although it was supported by all five members of the Non-Partisan Association (NPA).

Do you agree that such a definition, that equates criticism of Israel with anti-Semitism, “undermines both the Palestinian struggle for freedom, justice and equality and the global struggle against antisemitismRead more

Tabling at Roger Waters Concert, Vancouver

On September 15, Canada Palestine Association and BDS Vancouver joined with Samidoun Vancouver and the Canadian BDS Coalition in presenting an information table at the Roger Waters Concert, that highlighted campaigns to deshelve Israeli apartheid wines and free Palestinian prisoners.
As Samidoun noted in their social media report: “With a large Freedom for Palestine banner — a message reinforced repeatedly by Roger Waters throughout the show — we were able to meet and talk with many concertgoers, receiving very positive feedback, and real interest in getting involved in the campaign for Palestinian liberation.”… Read more

Response from Christine Boyle, OneCity Vancouver

1.   No IHRA at Vancouver city council: 

A motion was submitted by Councillor Kirby-Yung on July 23, 2019 to adopt the anti-Palestinian definition of the “International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) definition of antisemitism”, which aims to silence criticism of Israel. The motion was not passed, although it was supported by all five members of the Non-Partisan Association (NPA).

Do you agree that such a definition, that equates criticism of Israel with anti-Semitism, “undermines both the Palestinian struggle for freedom, justice and equality and the global struggle against antisemitism”? … Read more

#IVotePalestine: Vancouver Election Edition

UPDATE: Final Report #IVotePalestine Vancouver

The following questionnaire was sent to all civic organizations running in the Vancouver municipal election. Here are the responses so far.
1. Response from Christine Boyle, OneCity Vancouver
2. Response from Sean Orr, Vote Socialist: YES to all five questions. Vote Socialist also included some of the points raised in our questionnaire in their platform.Read more

David Eby & BC NDP’s Failure on Israeli Apartheid Wines

Four years ago this month, the Boycott Israeli Wines campaign held a picket at the MLA office of BC Attorney General David Eby. At the time, his mandate included the BC Liquor Distribution Branch, which has been flaunting international law and Palestinians rights for over a decade by stocking Israeli apartheid wines linked to the illegal settlement enterprise.

And our delegation inside his office.
Read more

Boycotting Israeli Products has a long history in Vancouver

In the late 1980s, Canada Palestine Association launched their first targeted consumer boycott of Achva Halva bars. Previous calls to boycott Israel had been more general and this campaign was to be the first of many consumer boycott initiatives. The campaign met with some success as several small businesses in the popular Commercial Drive area agreed to no longer carry the Halva bars, produced in an illegal Israeli settlement “industrial zone”.… Read more

Resources on Zionist Relations with Nazi Germany

  1. 51 Documents: Zionist Collaboration with the Nazis
    Paperback – Mar 16, 2010
    By Lenni Brenner
  2. Zionist Relations with Nazi Germany by Faris Yahya
    Original Printing: Palestine Research Center, Beirut, Lebanon, January 1978
    Second Printing: Palestine Distribution Center, Vancouver Canada, October 1980
  3. Zionism in the Age of Dictators
    Copyright 1983 by Lenni Brenner
  4. The Holocaust Victims Accuse
    Copyright 1977 by Reb Moshe Shonfeld
  5. Zionism During the Holocaust: The Weaponization of Memory in the Service of State and Nation
    By Tony Greenstein, October 2022
    Check the Electronic Intifada podcast interviewing the author on his book “How Zionists collaborated with the Nazis.
Read more

Celebrating the Art and Legacy of Betty Beeching

August 7, 2-5 pm, Trout Lake Community Centre

Betty Beeching, a long-time CPA member, passed away last summer. She and her late husband John were stalwarts of Palestinian activism for many decades, and their East Vancouver living room was the hub of meetings and receptions. If you are in East Vancouver on Aug. 7, please drop by and join us to celebrate Betty’s life and legacy, and see the original artwork done by both of them.… Read more

BC Govt: Pull Israeli Apartheid Wines

On June 28, Vancouver activists carried out another picket to promote the “Tell BC Govt to Pull Israeli Apartheid Wines” campaign. Hundreds of leaflets were distributed outside a BC liquor store and following that, the action moved to the office of MLA Melanie Mark. Several of her constituents were part of the picket and their concerns are being consistently sidelined by her office, despite her promise to meet with them.… Read more