Chow could have said “I'm sorry”; The Jewish community doesn't buy it

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Mayor Olivia Chow finally said she was “sorry.”

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Or her?

The only problem is that it's not clear what he's apologizing for and who he's apologizing to.

“I regret that I missed the memorial organized by UJA and CIJA this week. I should have been there. I'm sorry,” the mayor said in a statement emailed to: Toronto Sun Wednesday evening. “October 7 was an extremely painful day in an extremely difficult year. I mourn the tragic death of the Jewish community as a result of the horrific acts of Hamas. This is the highest death toll since the Holocaust.”

Is Chow sorry for missing a candlelight vigil for 10,000 mourners at the United Jewish Appeal Federation Sherman campus on Bathurst St. on Monday evening? because of an alleged mistake in the invitations? Or is he apologizing to the Jewish community for what they consider a deliberate slight?

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She didn't explain that. The mayor, who attended the Rosh Hashanah celebration at City Hall on Wednesday, will want it to be over.

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“He has a lot of work to do to really show that he cares about our community and not just bluntly repeat his statements,” said Michelle Stock, vice president of the Center for Israel and Jewish Affairs (CIJA).

But in the statement, the mayor appears to rely on the surprising claim that computer problems in her office resulted in her not receiving an invitation to the vigil, even though many other politicians manage to make it there.

“There were misunderstandings between my office and the organizers, but that's in the past,” Chow said. “We have created many new contact points with CIJA, so we do not miss out on invitations to important events. I'm looking forward to meeting UJA and CIJA, the organizations that organized this event.

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This was all news to CIJA, which says it has not heard anything directly from Chow or her office. They don't consider it a formal or proper apology. This is not the past for them.

“We are waiting for her to apologize to us, the Jewish community, directly and not through the media,” Stock said, adding that “we hope her office will contact us and arrange a meeting.”

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Additionally, Chow's statement was conspicuously absent from any acknowledgment that the Toronto Police Association also expects an apology for her failure to report to hospital following the shooting of a 53 Division police officer last week. Please remember that since October 7, 2023, Toronto Police have been attending protests every night. As a result of these protests, the Jewish community in Toronto has seen an increase in anti-Semitic crimes and feels unsafe.

Although Chow said, “I know there is fear in our city due to a significant increase in hate crimes. I condemn all forms of anti-Semitism and hatred in our city” – CIJA and UJA claim that they are not showing any sincerity.

“Her testimony on these issues is inconsistent and suspect,” Stock said. “But I look forward to hearing from her or her team when we can meet to discuss these issues and how she will deal with them.”

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So, as much as Chow would like to end this whole sorry mess, it's not over yet.

“She should apologize publicly,” said Councilor Brad Bradford, adding, “she should tell the community.”

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He's right. The community doesn't buy the narrative that the mayor didn't know the event was taking place or didn't receive an invitation – especially since Jewish councilor James Pasternak said he personally asked Chow if he intended to attend the event, and that the civic leader told him that she didn't know.

CIJA also prepared invitation emails that were sent directly to the organizer.

Chow also told Newstalk 1010 morning reporter John Moore, “you are absolutely right; I should be there” and offered the excuse that she “got involved in a long discussion about cycle lanes in the Kingsway area where emotions ran high and the meeting went on for quite a long time and by the time it was over I was exhausted.”

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But that meeting ended at 5:30 p.m. Premier Doug Ford also works overtime and was there. Former Mayor John Tory and Vaughan Mayor Steven Del Duca accomplished this.

The truth is that Chow's tenure and his suitability as mayor are faltering. Calls for her resignation are already starting to grow – not least because she failed to appear at such an important event. There is also the mayor's perceived obfuscation and parsing of words that is beneath the intelligence of citizens who know snow when they see it.

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What has come out of her office since she left this obligatory memorial has been amateurish and disrespectful.

“I wondered if it had been spammed or something,” Chow told Moore that the email had not arrived.

It's a ridiculous idea, and no one buys her “didn't-receive-the-invitation” claim.

In her statement on October 4, she mentioned that vigils would be held on the weekend of October 7. She doesn't need an invitation. This is her city. She's the mayor and people were in need and she wasn't there.

“We felt abandoned,” Stock said. “He needs to show us that he truly wants to work with the community, speak out against anti-Semitism and show how he intends to create an environment where the Jewish community can feel safe living and working here in Toronto.”

This will only be possible through a proper, sincere and personal apology to the Jewish community, which has not happened yet.

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