Union leaders, pro-Palestine activists and free speech advocates held a press conference on Thursday, July 31 in Toronto in support of a York Region paramedic who was fired by the municipality for speaking out against the genocide in Gaza.
Katherine Grzejszczak, who is a member of the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) Ontario, was fired by the York Region municipality on June 20 after replying to a post on Facebook saying:
“In the last 2 yeqrs (sic) Israel has bombed Palestine, Yemen, Lebanon, Syria and now Iran. They have been occupying Palestine for 75+ years. They are luring starving Palestinian children to their concentration camp food aid depots so they can snipe them dead.
They keep murdering workers – media, healthcare, municipal – they just mass murdered 15 first responders, including 7 paramedics – Any union or other organization that doesn’t fight this is choosing to stay silent during genocide. Thanks CUPE Ontario and Toronto & York Region Labour Council for asking members to join these demonstrations, to stop the bombing of Iran. You’re one of the few who stand in solidarity with workers.”
The post Grzejszczak replied to was for a rally that was held at the US consulate in Toronto on June 22.
Targeted campaign to silence
Grzejszczak appears to have become a target of Zionist advocates like Dahlia Kurtz and local politicians who campaigned to have her fired as a paramedic.
In a social media post Vaughn city councillor Gila Martow indicated that she and Vaughn Mayor Steven Del Duca, the former leader of the provincial Liberal Party, had reached out to the York Region municipality to pressure them to fire Grzejszczak:
“On Friday June 20 I was made aware of a paramedic employed by York Region who had allegedly posted a hateful message on social media. Vaughan Mayor Steven Del Duca immediately reached out to the Chair of York Region with the community’s concerns. The matter was investigated and we have received confirmation that the individual is no longer employed by York Region.”
READ MORE: York Region paramedic fired for support of anti-war rally
Kurtz targeted Grzejszczak on social media, going as far as to say that her wearing of a Palestinian Keffiyeh made her feel that she would not trust Grzejszczak if her life was in her hands.
Rallying for workers and Palestinians
At the press conference on Thursday, speakers called for the reinstatement of Grzejszczak as a paramedic with the York Region, and for an end to the ongoing genocide in Gaza.
“Being in a union is about fighting for the rights of all working class people, especially those who are being oppressed,” said Krista Laing, Chair, CUPE Ontario Municipal Workers. “Katherine is fighting her termination through the grievance process. Was denied by York Region at step 2. Will continue pursuing grievance process to arbitration.”
Representatives from Labour for Palestine, Health Care Workers Alliance for Palestine, the Centre for Free Expression, and Independent Jewish Voices all spoke in support of Grzejszczak.
“Let me be clear, criticism of Israel, criticism of a state that is systemically starving two million people, is not antisemitic,” said Anna Lippman of Independent Jewish Voices. “Bombings innocent civilians has nothing to do with Judaism. Those who think it does are perpetuating antisemitism, not Katherine.”
Grzejszczak herself also took to the podium to defend herself, thank those who have supported her, and to call for an end to the genocide of Palestinians.
“I’m here to respond to the mischaracterization of my Facebook comment and that somehow my employment as a paramedic is a threat to public safety,” she said. “My post was referring to the targeted killing of workers.”
Israel has killed 1,400 medical workers in Gaza since October 7, 2023, including nine workers with the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies. Those workers were travelling in late March to help injured Palestinians in a marked Red Crescent vehicle when they were attacked by Israeli soldiers, killed, and their bodies buried in the desert near their vehicle.
“They were murdered for trying to provide emergency medical care to injured Gazans,” Grzejszczak said. “Palestinians continue to be murdered en masse because Canadian institutions fail to recognize them as human beings.”
Hot cargo
Pamela Arancibia of Labour for Palestine called for all union workers to treat Israeli goods as “hot cargo.”
Hot cargo is when union workers refuse to handle goods, services, and partnerships connected to an organization engaged in anti-union or anti-worker activity. Sometimes it is applied to companies who engage in scab labour, or who lockout workers, or who refuse to abide by collective agreements.
In this case, Arancibia and Labour for Palestine is calling on all workers to treat every good, partnership and service connected with Israel as hot cargo for the ongoing killing of workers and Palestinians in Gaza.
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