A police spokeswoman has responded saying officers were ‘performing a helpful act’ that day while emphasizing their priority was to maintain order at the time.
A number of MPs and other politicians have criticized the Toronto police for delivering coffee to pro-Palestine protesters. Amid public concerns that these demonstrations pose a threat to Jewish communities and also disrupt traffic, this action has heightened those worries.
In a
video posted on social media platform X, Toronto lawyer and online commentator Caryma Sa'd captured a Toronto police constable delivering a cardboard urn of Tim Hortons coffee along with a stack of cups to a protester during an anti-Israel demonstration that blocked access to the Highway 401 overpass at
Avenue Road on Jan. 6. This location is in close proximity to neighbourhoods like Armour Heights, in the district of North York, that are known for their dense Jewish population.
Asked how he got coffee from the police, the unnamed protester said the coffee was not provided by the police but that “someone bought it for us, but police won’t let them in, so the police is now becoming our little messengers between us.”
Liberal MP
Anthony Housefather criticized the police’s action of delivering coffee to the demonstrators, describing it as “a very poor decision” given the context of the protests in Toronto. He also expressed concerns that such actions could “further undermine confidence in the way the force is handling the demonstrations.”
Liberal MP
Marco Mendicino also criticized the police action, saying that it “will just embolden more deliberate obstruction of traffic, undermine public safety, and add to local frustrations.” “Laws exist to prevent this. They need to be enforced!” he wrote on X.
MP and Conservative deputy leader
Melissa Lantsman emphasized that recent pro-Palestine protests have served to intimidate Jewish communities and called on law enforcement to address the matter.
“I see we’re are back to intimidating Jewish neighbourhoods and closing down overpasses the middle of Toronto,” Ms. Lantsman wrote in a post on X on Jan. 6.
“How many more weekends like this until there is equal enforcement of the law in this country? How many more weekends like this until the Prime Minister acknowledges the problem?”
Toronto Police Chief Myron Demkiw issued a statement on Jan. 7, offering an apology in connection with officers’ interaction with protesters.
“Questions have been raised regarding one particular interaction between officers and a person on the Avenue Road bridge during an hours-long demonstration. Whatever the intent, the impact has been to cause concern and confusion and for that I am sorry,” Chief Demkiw
said on social media.
