Jewish group fails to stop postal union lawsuit over pro-terrorism comments

TORONTO — A Jewish activist group has lost its bid to block a defamation suit from one of the country’s leading public-sector unions, which took exception to suggestions it supports Palestinian terrorist causes.

In a Superior Court ruling, an Ontario judge rejected an assertion by B’Nai Brith Canada that the still-unproven claim was simply an attempt to stifle public criticism of the Canadian Union of Postal Workers.

“This is a legitimate defamation action brought in circumstances where the union should have the right to pursue a remedy,” Justice Calum MacLeod said in his decision. “The evidence before me suggests that (B’Nai Brith’s defence) is not a ‘slam dunk’ — to the contrary, there are significant issues about truth, good faith, responsibility and malice.”

The union, commonly known as CUPW, co-operates with similar organizations in other countries, including with one that speaks for Palestinian postal workers. CUPW also supports an international boycott of Israeli products — a fiercely controversial issue — on the grounds that Israel mistreats Palestinians in the occupied territories.

After a member of CUPW complained about the union’s position, B’nai Brith said it found social media postings from the Palestinian Postal Service Workers Union praising anti-Israeli terrorism, court records show.

In July 2018, the Jewish group put out a news release in which it said CUPW was aligned with a pro-terrorism union that glorifies terrorists on its official Facebook page. B’nai Brith also accused the Canadian union’s leadership of aligning itself with the “path of violence and extremism.”

A subsequent news release in August 2018 referred to CUPW’s leadership as “radical” and unresponsive as to why they would partner with a “terror-supporting organization.” It also decried CUPW’s ability to “compel its Jewish and Israeli members to pay fees, which may be used to support a foreign organization that wants to see them murdered.”

CUPW sued B’nai Brith for malicious defamation, saying the organization had “reckless disregard for the truth.” The union said its calls for a peaceful, two-state solution for the Israeli-Palestinian conflict were well known and that it rejected terrorism, violence and anti-Semitism.

B’nai Brith sought to block the defamation action in its tracks under so called anti-SLAPP legislation, which precludes “strategic litigation against public participation” — lawsuits aimed at stifling free speech and legitimate criticism of matters in the public interest.

While MacLeod agreed the union’s political position on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is a matter of public interest and legitimate criticism of its views are protected speech, he also suggested that B’Nai Brith appeared to have gone too far.

“Words suggesting that a union is using its membership dues improperly, supports terrorism, and is motivated by racism would easily meet the test of language tending to diminish the reputation of the union in the minds of reasonable people,” MacLeod said. “Not only would it be difficult to prove that CUPW literally supports terrorism, violence or anti-Semitism, the evidence also suggests it will be difficult to show that (the Palestinian union) officially supports terrorism.”

The evidence, the judge said, also indicated the relevant Facebook postings were from an individual, not the leadership of the Palestinian union.

The union’s defamation claim has yet to be tested in court.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 21, 2020.

Colin Perkel, The Canadian Press