(Oct. 12, 2024 / JNS) A “firearm discharge” from a car targeted Bais Chaya Mushka Girls Elementary School in Toronto at 4:05 a.m. on Yom Kippur, the Toronto Police Service said on Saturday.

“This is domestic terrorism,” wrote Canadian parliamentarian Kevin Vuong, who represents Toronto and who noted that this is the second time that a shooter, or shooters, targeted the Toronto Jewish school.

Police said that there were no reported injuries, and that evidence of gunfire was found.

“I’m very disturbed to hear that last night, as families marked Yom Kippur, there were shots fired at a Jewish school in Toronto,” Justin Trudeau, the Canadian prime minister, stated. “As we wait for more details, my heart goes out to the students, staff and parents who must be terrified and hurting today.”

“Antisemitism is a disgusting and dangerous form of hate—and we won’t let it stand,” he said.

Pierre Poilievre, the Canadian opposition leader who is running against Trudeau, wrote that there were “more bullets fired at a Jewish school overnight in Toronto.”

“This is yet another shameful and terrifyingly common antisemitic attack in Canada in 2024. It is part of a 251% increase in hate crimes during the nine years of the NDP-Liberals,” he added. “I will ban the terrorists, secure our borders, lock up criminals and bring home safety for all.” (The NDP is the New Democratic Party.)

The Toronto Police Service added later in the day that it is “investigating the troubling firearm discharges at the Bais Chaya Mushka Elementary School early this morning.” It asked anyone with relevant video footage to come forward.

“This sadistic intimidation of innocent children and families goes beyond any debates. This is terrorism,” wrote Amir Hart, a People’s Party of Canada candidate for office in Thornhill, in Ontario, which has a large Jewish community.

“We must come together as a community, regardless of ethnicity and religion, and unite against these sadistic extremists which are looking for an excuse to commit terrorism,” Hart said.

The Friends of Simon Wiesenthal Center stated that it is “deeply disturbed that a Jewish school in Toronto was hit with gunfire overnight, as the Jewish community marked Yom Kippur, the holiest day on the Jewish calendar.”

“Bais Chaya Mushka, a Jewish girls’ school, was the target of gunfire for the second time, following a similar incident in May,” it stated. “No one was injured, but windows were broken in this latest attack which comes amid a continuing surge in antisemitism in Toronto and elsewhere in Canada.”

“Tragically, the reality of life for Jews in Canada now includes gunfire targeting our schools, metal detectors and armed police outside our synagogues, ongoing harassment of Jewish students on university campuses and terror-glorifying hate rallies on our city streets,” stated Michael Levitt, the president and CEO of the nonprofit.

“This is not just a Jewish problem, and Jews alone can’t fix it. Condemnations are appreciated but they are not nearly enough,” he added. “Our leaders need to act decisively and urgently to address this grave situation before someone gets seriously hurt.”

By MYRON LOVE Although she has only been in Winnipeg for five years, young Israeli-born artist Mishelle Aminov Kosonovsky has already drawn much positive attention in local art circles.
Both in 2022 and 2023, she was awarded the Jewish Foundation of Manitoba’s Mona Gray Creative Arts Scholarship toward her studies at the University of Manitoba in the Fine Arts program. 
This past spring, her work was shown alongside her fellow Fine Arts grads in an exhibit sponsored by the Winnipeg Arts Council.
Last month, she began a year-long mentorship program – under the aegis of the Mentoring Artists for Women’s Art (MAWA) collective – for budding female artists.
And, later this month, Aminov Kosonovsky will be one of seven local  Jewish artists – including Yael Freifeld, Etel Shevelev, Halley Ritter and Shan Pullan (all of whom, along with Aminov Kosonovsky,  work together under a collective called Rimon) along with longer established artist Elena El and newly emerging artist Joel Novek – featured as part of the Rady Centre’s first annual JFest celebration of Jewish culture and the arts.
“This is the second year that we are hosting an art exhibit,” notes Shira Newman, the Rady Centre’s co-ordinator of Arts and Older Adult programming.   “We did this on a smaller scale last year. This year, we are featuring more artists who have come to Winnipeg from all over the world. We have some really gifted artists in our community.”
The art exhibit – “Glowing Embers: New Works by Manitoba Jewish Artists” – will kick off with an opening reception – on Saturday, October 26, from 7:00-8:00 – in the Adult Lounge – which will be transformed into an art gallery for the duration of the exhibit.  The exhibit will be open at different times during the next few days – so check the schedule before you come.
(JFest, which runs from October 27 to November 7, will also have a musical component and a children’s program.)

Mishelle  Aminov Kosonovsky was born in Israel and grew up in Petah Tikvah. She notes that he parents were originally from Uzbekistan in central Asia.
“I speak Russian, Hebrew and English,” she says.
Aminov Kosonovsky  credits her interest in art to her zaida’s encouragement when she was quite young.   “He was a picture framer,” she recalls.   “He brought me art supplies and let me work with him on some of his projects.  He actually gathered materials for me from scraps which we repurposed to create doll houses, miniature furniture, puppets. clocks and more.”
While still in Israel, the young artist was included in a couple of group exhibits and was featured in one solo show.
Aminov Kosonovsky notes that her parents came to Winnipeg first. She followed after completing her national service, which she did by doing art therapy – as an educational assistant – at Schneider Children’s Medical Center of Israel in Petah Tikvah.    
On arriving in Winnipeg, she enrolled at the University of Manitoba in the Fine Arts program.   Her acceptance into the MAWA mentorship program was the next step in her evolution as an artist.
The artist-run centre was founded in 1984 to “encourage and support the intellectual and creative development of women in the visual arts by providing an ongoing forum for education and critical dialogue.”  Its Foundation Mentorship Program (FMP) is a professional training program designed to help women and gender diverse people in the visual arts develop skills and define their decision-making philosophies by providing information, resources and support. In this year-long professional training program, established artists (mentors) meet individually with their mentees for 4 hours per month to share their experience, expertise and advice. The entire FMP group meets for 3 hours each month for critiques, discussion, gallery visits and other activities.
“I am excited to have Bonnie Marin, my first professor at university here, as my mentor,” Aminov Kosonofsky notes.  “Under her guidance, I am experimenting more with collages and print making.”
As part of the upcoming JFest activities, Aminov Kosonofsky and her sister artists who comprise the Rimon Art Collective will be leading a print-making workshop – with the theme of “home” on Monday, October 28, at 7:00 P.M.
Rimon means “pomegranate” in Hebrew. The Rimon Art Collective artists are a diverse  group of young Jewish artists who “have come together for both creativity and comfort as a supportive family seeking refuge in the transformative powers of art and community”.
“Yael (Freifeld), Shan (Pullan) and I formed Rimon about 10 months ago,” Aminov Kosonovsky reports.  “We met at university. We had come to realize that the art world is not accepting of Jewish artists and that there was  a need to create an environment where we could comfortably talk about our artistic vision with others who understand our perspective.”
Last spring, the Collective was featured in a group exhibition – under the theme of Kabbalat Shalom – at the Pembina Hills Arts Council building in  Morden.
“We hope to have more shows in the future,”  Aminov Kosonovsky notes.
She has also developed an interest in fibre art.  “Fibre art, with its emphasis on sensory motion activities, is particularly helpful in working with people dealing with trauma,” she notes.
In addition to her work as an artist, Aminov Kosonovsky is also working toward a degree in Art Therapy – building on her experiences in Israel.  She is currently enrolled in a two-year online program at Kutenai College in Nelson, B.C.
 
 A few months ago, Aminov Kosonofsky and her Israeli-born fiancé Vladimir –whom she met at university – moved to a rural property in the community of Lorette, outside of Winnipeg. 
“I have always loved the outdoors,” she says.  “I enjoy taking long walks in the field. “I also like horses.  In Israel, I was involved in show jumping competitions.  I hope to one day have a horse here as well.”

By MYRON LOVE For a lifelong journalist such as myself, the development of the internet has been a real boon. Long gone are the days when I would have to mail in my stories and photos – the latter after having to wait a week for the photos to be developed. With the click of a computer key or two, I can check the correct spelling of names and titles, the work and education history of almost anyone or any business or institution I am writing about.    There is a world of information at my fingertips.
Regrettably though, as with most things in life, there is potential for harm as well as good – and the internet – in particular, social media – is no exception. Malicious players can – and do – use social media to foment “misinformation” and hate with their efforts greatly enhanced by the ongoing development of AI (artificial intelligence) against Jews in general and Israel specifically. 
The scope of the problem was outlined a couple of weeks ago by University of Haifa  Professor Dr. David Barak-Gorodetsky during a presentation – “Anti-Semitism Unplugged: Can AI Combat Hate” – at the new Congregation Etz Chayim – under the auspices of Canadian Friends of Haifa University.  Gorodetsky’s presentation in Winnipeg was the first stop on a tour of Jewish communities in Western Canada with plans to also speak in Vancouver and Calgary.
The presentation – which attracted about 100 – began with a prayer for the People of Israel and the IDF and the safe return of the hostages, led by Etz Chayim’s spiritual leader Rabbi Kliel Rose.
Prior to introducing the guest speaker, former Winnipegger Ariel Karabelnicoff, the executive director of CFHU,  screened a video and provided an overview of Israel’s youngest university (which was founded in 1972).
In an interview earlier this year, Karabelnicoff  noted that the university has an enrolment of 18,000 students – with a student body that reflects the diversity of Israel’s population.  About 40% of the students come from the Druze, Circassian and Arab communities and – among the Jewish students – there are many whose families are from Ethiopia.
He pointed out that the university has several campuses. The original campus – a 30-floor structure on Mount Carmel, houses several  faculties – among them the Faculty of Law – in its  new building  – and the Leon H. Charney School of Marine Sciences that offers the only graduate program in Israel in that field. The Computer Science Faculty is located in the port area. . The faculty of Design and Architecture – formerly the Neri Bloomfield School of Design under Hadassah-WIZO hospices –  is situated in Haifa’s German Colony neighbourhood.
Coming soon for the University of Haifa,  Karabelnicoff reports, will be a new School of Medicine.  The school, he reported, will start teaching the first 50 students in October 2025. In subsequent years 150 students a year will be trained on a regular basis.
David Barak-Gorodetsky is a graduate of the University of Haifa – having earned his Ph.D. in 2016.  (He is also an ordained Reform rabbi – Hebrew Union College , 2017.) Barak-Gorodetsky is currently head of both the University’s Ruderman MA Program for Jewish American Studies within the Department of Jewish History and  the Elizabeth and Tony Comper Interdisciplinary Center for the study of Antisemitism and Racism.
One very concerning statistic that he cited, based on reports by CyberWell,  is that, previous to October 7, 75% of Arabic language posts on social media flagged as anti-Semitic focused on Jewish stereotypes, tropes and conspiracy theories.  Since October 7, that figure has dropped to about 25% – but now 60% are calling for violence against Jews – while many are also denying that the mass rapes happened or are blaming Israel for what happened.
“October 7 denial, spurred on by AI has become a  major issue,” he said.
At the same time, Barak-Gorodetsky pointed out, there is widespread indifference to the exponential increase in anti-Semitism on social media.  The scale of that indifference, he noted, is borne out by the fact that, while over 1,500 academic papers had been written about online hate, less than 1% of them deal with anti-Semitism. 
One of the major difficulties in combating AI-created anti-Semitism on social media, he pointed out, is that anti-Semitism is not always easy to define or recognize.   He cited the example of efforts by Holocaust deniers to discredit “The Diary of Anne Fran,” by suggesting that some of the pages were written with ball point pen ink. Ball point pen ink was not introduced until the 1950s.  The allegations are based on two scraps of paper that were added to the diary – most likely by Otto Frank – decades later.
He spoke about “dog whistles” – coded language such as substituting the term “Zionist” for “Jew,” chanting “from the river to the sea,” or comparing Israel to Nazi Germany.
Barak-Gorodetsky noted that a major challenge to removing anti-Semitic material is that the process is labour intensive.  “The rate of removal is only about 30%,” he reported.
“At the Universoty of Haifa,” he noted, “we have initiated a project whose focus is to create methods of detecting Anti-Semitism on social media and developing bots and other means to counter it or remove it.”
He added that among the project’s team members are individuals who specialize in certain languages and regions such as Russia and India.
Gorodetsky was asked what individuals can do in terms of online hate.  His response was: Strengthen one’s own Jewish identity. “Don’t just play defense,” he advised.  “Try to find joy in Judaism.”

The Canadian Friends of Haifa University, Ariel Karabelnicoff noted, has been in operation since 1973. The organization has been, until now, largely focused on Toronto. As executive director, he  is working to expand the CFHU outreach to other Canadian Jewish communities.
“There are a lot of Israelis living in Winnipeg, for example,” he said in that earlier interview. “I have begun reaching out to them.
“I would also like to see if we could negotiate some joint programming Between Haifa University and the University of Manitoba.”
For readers interested in contacting Ariel about supporting Canadian Friends of Haifa University, his email address is ariel.karabelnicoff@haifa-univ.ca.