03/15/21: On Saturday night, I issued a community wide alert regarding a violent antisemitic incident which occurred at a bakery in the Avenue Rd. and Eglinton Ave. area in Toronto.
Jewish patrons were verbally attacked by another patron with disturbing antisemitic epithets and swear words. One Jewish patron who confronted the perpetrator was punched. A fight ensued outside. I have been in touch with the victims to help them through the process.
The assailant is described by witnesses as male 55-60 yrs old and approximately 6'2". He fled the scene before police arrived. Subsequently, I received information that a similar attack happened at the same location in November. That information has been provided to police including a photograph of a license plate.
Further to my initial communication over the weekend, the Toronto Police Hate Crimes Unit updated me about the active investigation underway. Detail will be provided shortly. For the time being, no other information will be released until the police investigation has been updated or concluded.
Recommendations for the public: If you are involved in or are witness to an incident, please contact police immediately. Please do not get into a physical altercation. I am always happy to help and can be contacted at avibenlolo@icloud.com . For urgent community updates, you can subscribe to my website at www.avibenlolo.org
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Media Inquiries:
Contact Avi Benlolo at avibenlolo@icloud.com
ABOUT: Avi Abraham Benlolo has been described as the nation's most prominent and noted expert in Holocaust studies, in countering Antisemitism and promoting human rights. His academic research, graduate degree and nearly three decades of professional work has focused on these arenas in addition to peace and security in the Middle East. He has published hundreds of articles in these areas. In recognition of his national and international leadership in this area, he has received numerous awards including an Honorary Doctorate from a prestigious Israeli university for his work in Holocaust studies and combating antisemitism; an Order of Vaughan for his distinguished contribution to anti-racism, equity and diversity; the Queens Diamond Jubilee Award for his contributions to Canada and a race relations award for best practice, based on distinguished service in promoting human rights.
