Jewish man allegedly assaulted while walking dog in Toronto neighbourhood
A Toronto man says he became the target of an assault and anti-Semitic slurs while he was out walking his dog on Wednesday.
Sam Brody says he was walking his dog at around 9 a.m. near his midtown home when a man approached him.
“As we passed him, he stopped and body checked me into the fence here. I fell down to the ground," he said.
The 29-year-old man believes he was targeted because he was wearing a Jewish skullcap.
“This brazen assault comes amid an unprecedented surge of physical attacks on Canadian Jews,” B'nai Brith Canada writes in a statement. “A recent assault on a Jewish man near his home in broad daylight is just the latest in a disturbing trend of attacks on Jews stemming from anti-Israel sentiment."
Brody says the attack came out of nowhere, and he didn’t know what to do.
“I was scared, like I don’t know what he was going to do after that,” Brody said. “Someone to hit me like that out of the blue, knock me to the ground, say something like that … I don’t know what he was going to do next. I’m just scared, I’m still kind of scared now, shaken up.”
Brody now worries the man lives in his Yonge and Eglinton neighbourhood where he recently moved to with his wife.
Brody complained to Toronto police and said officers came by to interview him.
“At this time we can confirm that we have a report on file for an assault which occurred in the morning hours of Wednesday, July 28, 2021, in the Yonge Street and Eglinton Avenue area,” police told CTV News Toronto. “The investigation is active and ongoing”
Brody posted about the assault on Facebook and while he was speaking with CTV Toronto on his street, a woman named Eden Spodek recognized him from the posting.
“I think it is horrible. I can’t believe this is 2021 and this is happening in Toronto. I’ve lived here most of my life. I’ve lived in a smaller centre,” Spodek said.
“I know what it is like to really be a minority, and be Jewish. It is just very disturbing, distressing. All hate crimes are equally disturbing and distressing."
B'nai Brith Canada reports that in May alone there were 154 incidents of harassment, 51 incidents of vandalism and 61 incidents of violence.
B'nai Brith Canada CEO Michael Mostyn tells CTV News Toronto that the Jewish community is scared.
“It is not acceptable and that is why we trust that police will find the perpetrator that the person will be prosecuted under the law,” he said.
“There needs to be consequences and individuals need to know that there is a red line when it comes to hate, hateful acts, hateful rhetoric will not tolerated in this country.”
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
U.S. schools turn to artificial intelligence to spot guns as companies press lawmakers for state funds
Kansas could soon offer up to US$5 million in grants for schools to outfit surveillance cameras with artificial intelligence systems that can spot people carrying guns. But the governor needs to approve the expenditures and the schools must meet some very specific criteria.
Air quality advisories issued in 5 provinces, 1 territory
Air quality advisories are in effect across Western Canada as smoky conditions plague some areas, according to the latest forecasts. Here's where.
Just how bad are ultraprocessed foods? Here are 5 things to know
Many foods fall under the category of ultraprocessed foods, depending on their exact ingredients. This type of food has been studied a lot lately, and the results aren’t great.
No refund for travellers who cancelled flight already scrapped by airline: regulator
Four years on, the controversy over whether airlines owed refunds to passengers after cancelling hundreds of thousands of flights during the pandemic continues to simmer, aggravated by a sluggish, opaque complaints process.
opinion Harry and Meghan's Nigerian adventure: traditional attire to warm welcomes
For her latest column on CTVNews.ca, royal commentator Afua Hagan writes about Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's recent visit to Nigeria, calling it a 'deeply meaningful campaign' that was about aligning their ongoing efforts to foster mental-health awareness and promoting the Invictus Games.
'Oh my God, you're my brother': Man in his 70s discovers 6 unknown siblings
After receiving a DNA kit one Christmas from his son-in-law, Hugh McCormick soon discovered that he had six unknown siblings, with whom he shared the same birth parents.
'It happened so fast': Evacuees describe fleeing Fort Nelson, B.C., wildfire
Thousands have been forced to flee a wildfire burning near Fort Nelson. Meanwhile, some experienced volunteers are staying behind to fight the fire.
Rates of cancer declining in Canada, but more work needed to save lives: projections
A new study projecting declining rates of cancer cases and deaths in Canada demonstrates the success of prevention and early detection programs, but also highlights areas where more work is needed to save and prolong lives, researchers say.
DEVELOPING Michael Cohen takes the stand as testimony in Trump hush money case enters 4th week
The star prosecution witness in Donald Trump's hush money trial is set to take the stand Monday with testimony that could help shape the outcome of the first criminal case against an American president.