Outremont Hasidim make plea for help

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by PHILIP PREVILLE

This week B'Nai Brith Canada released its 1999 Audit of Antisemitic Incidents, an annual record of grave desecrations, swaztika graffiti, Internet sites and other nefarious anti-Jewish activities. According to the audit, there were 37 incidents in Montreal, up from 20 in 1998--an 85 per cent increase.

"It's important to note that Montreal's numbers were low to begin with," says B'Nai Brith lawyer Steven Slimovitch. "The percentage is exaggerated, but it gets the message across."

Slimovitch points out that, for the first time in the 18-year history of the Audit, the Hasidic community of Outremont lodged a complaint with B'Nai Brith. Their grievance concerned Outremont city councillor Celine Forget, who evicted them from a building she owned where they had established a small ground-floor synagogue. In a case currently before the courts, she alleges that three Hasidim threw eggs at her.

"The Hasidic community is usually very closed," says Slimovitch. "For them to come to a mainstream Jewish organization, well, that's definitely a cry for help. They feel targeted."

B'Nai Brith hopes to meet with Forget soon in an effort to resolve the ongoing dispute. :

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