After Fredericton's pride parade was led by pro-Palestinian activists, local Jews worry about their place in the city

The CJN Daily with Ellin Bessner

Fredericton's annual LGBTQ pride parade wound its way through the New Brunswick capital on July 21—with the Fredericton Palestine Solidarity group leading the event as grand marshals. The march went ahead despite the mayor and provincial lieutenant-governor pulling out due to the event's distinctly political tone.

Local Jewish leaders and groups, meanwhile, tried to keep the parade apolitical and convince sponsors to boycott it. The parade has become the latest anti-Zionist flashpoint in Fredericton since Oct. 7, after at least three hate crimes against Jews have occurred in the past few months. A synagogue was vandalized before a Holocaust remembrance event; an Israeli high school girl was badly beaten by a Muslim classmate, with charges pending; and, most recently, a large rock was thrown through the apartment windows of an Israeli man studying at the University of New Brunswick.

And so, on today's episode of The CJN Daily, we ask: What's going on in Fredericton? To hear some answers, we're joined by Ayten Kranat, a leader of the city's Sgoolai Israel congregation, and by the Israeli UNB student who was targeted because he displayed his Israeli flag in the window of his off-campus apartment.

What we talked about:

• Why Pride events in Fredericton and Newfoundland became the centre of controversy after organizers chose to appoint Palestinian community groups as parade marshalls, in The CJN.
• Fredericton police arrest a high school student after Israel classmate attacked and beaten, in The CJN.
• How the wider community turned out in solidarity after Fredericton synagogue vandalized, in The CJN.

**Credits: **

The CJN Daily is written and hosted by Ellin Bessner (@ebessner on Twitter). Zachary Kauffman is the producer. Michael Fraiman is the executive producer. Our theme music is by Dov Beck-Levine. We’re a member of The CJN Podcast Network. To subscribe to this podcast, please watch this video. Donate to The CJN and receive a charitable tax receipt by clicking here. Hear why The CJN is important to me.