September 1, 2024
Dear members of the CUPE National Executive Board,
Almost a week has passed since we issued the statement below, yet we have heard no response from your board.
The number of signatories to our statement is now over 30 and we will continue to invite more community organizations to sign. The current list includes the leading cultural, professional, legal, and campaign groups in our community.
As you are likely aware, many in our community are members of CUPE and have been sharing their concerns with us.
We hope you soon move to a resolution that reverses your request for CUPE Ontario President Fred Hahn to resign.
Thank you.
Sincerely,
Mohamed Boudjenane
Canadian Arab Federation
Arab-Canadian organizations issue open letter to CUPE National:
“Your attack on Fred Hahn has put all of us at risk”
To CUPE National President Mark Hancock, CUPE National Secretary-Treasurer Candace Rennick, and the National Executive Board
We are writing to share with you our profound disappointment at your decision to request the resignation of CUPE Ontario President Fred Hahn from the CUPE National Executive Board.
The last year has been a painful and difficult one for our community, especially our Palestinian members. We are witnessing a genocide unfold in Gaza, while most of our elected leaders remain silent. Anti-Palestinian racism is rampant, yet very few leaders will acknowledge it. Arab-Canadians are increasingly targeted at work and in their communities, but have struggled to find support in a climate of fear and retribution.
It is for these reasons that Fred Hahn has stood out as a principled and steadfast supporter of our community. He has amplified our calls to center our humanity, and echoed our demands for peace and justice. He has spoken truth to power, on this issue and many others, and has refused to back down in the face of bullying and intimidation.
Like Fred, our community has been the target of baseless and vicious smears simply for asserting our identity and demanding our rights. We, too, have faced unfounded allegations of antisemitism in response to our advocacy for Palestinian human rights and self-determination. And like Fred, we utterly reject them.
These claims are hurtful and harmful. We are deeply grateful for the solidarity of our Jewish friends, neighbours, and co-workers, who are steadfast allies in the Palestine solidarity movement.
We have also been deeply grateful for the solidarity of our trade union allies. Historically, CUPE has played a leading role throughout the labour movement in defending the human rights of Palestinians and, until now, has consistently resisted the threats and intimidation of those who deny the humanity of our people.
This is why your decision to target Fred came as such a shock to us. It represents more than just an attack on the democratic mandate Fred won in his recent re-election as CUPE Ontario president. It also represents the abandonment of CUPE’s commitment to the Palestinian people and to the broader cause of equity, peace, and justice.
Despite whatever resolutions CUPE has passed about these issues, the impact of your decision to target Fred undermines all of them. Even worse, it has now put at risk members of our own community, who are facing the same kind of attacks as Fred.
When we fail to defend leaders who speak out for justice, the rest of us become more vulnerable. Indeed, our community is already feeling the impact of an emboldened right wing that is now telling our members: You’re next.
As community leaders who value the work of CUPE and consider you to be allies, we are urging you to immediately reverse your decision to request Fred’s removal from the National Executive Board. It is never too late to do the right thing. Reconsidering a decision made in haste or under duress is a sign of strength and leadership, not weakness or indecision.
Please act now and let us resume, together, our work of building a united movement for peace and justice.
Yours in peace and solidarity,
Arab Canadian Lawyers Association
Arab Palestine Association of Ontario
Atlantic Canada Palestinian Society
Canadian BDS Coalition
Canada Palestine Association, Vancouver
Canadian Arab Federation
Canadian Arab Forum for Accessibility, Empowerment & Inclusion
Canadian Arab Network
Canadian Palestinian Association of Manitoba
Canadian Palestinian Coalition
Canadians 4 Palestine
Canadians for Justice & Peace in the Middle East
Canadian-Lebanese Academic Forum
Coalition of Arab Canadian Professional Organizations
Coalition of Canadian Palestinian Organizations
Coordinating Council for Palestine
Health Workers’ Alliance for Palestine
Just Peace Advocates / Mouvement pour une paix juste
The Legal Centre for Palestine
Middle East Support Network
Mississauga – Streetsville for Palestine
Multicultural Community Association
National Council on Canada-Arab Relations
Ontario Palestinian Rights Association
Palestine House Educational & Cultural Centre
Palestine Solidarity Sudbury
Palestinian & Jewish Unity
Palestinian Canadian Academics & Artists Network
Palestinian Youth Movement
Rally for Palestine, Victoria
Sarnians for Palestinians
Toronto Palestinian Families
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