On December 13, 2023, Liberal Member of Parliament Wayne Long and his administrative assistant, Jeannette Arsenault made what amounts to slanderous comments regarding pro-Palestinian activists. MP Wayne Long and his administrative assistant Jeanette Arsenault were captured on video (the video no longer appears on Instagram), as they publicly intimidated protestors, accusing them of “terrorism”, and issuing what were clearly racist comments. This anti-Palestinian (and by logical corollary anti-Arab) racism and unethical conduct are unacceptable when mouthed by any individual, but even more so when they are issued by an elected representative of Parliament.
Despite having initially apologized for his racist comments, during the past months, Long has continued to issue unfounded allegations against individuals in what seems to be an attempt to discredit and intimidate Palestinian solidarity activists. In so doing, he has made himself not simply a tacit supporter of Israel’s genocidal campaign in Gaza, but has shown that he openly supports it. As such, it is PAJU’s opinion that a complaint against MP Wayne Long should be lodged with the Office of the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC).
A statement issued by Just Peace Advocates regarding MP Long’s anti-Palestinian, anti-Arab comments is worth quoting:
“Over the months, MP Long has continued to spread misinformation and allegations that undermine justice for Palestinians and that distract from his government’s deep complicity in the illegal occupation of Palestine and the genocide of Palestinians in Gaza. This is one example of inciting and inflammatory posts and comments on MP Long’s official account about this incident. We are appalled that MP Long has failed to hear the diverse voices from his own constituency. Rather he continues to demonstrate anti-Palestinian racism, posting of himself on his official Facebook account further disparaging the Palestine Solidarity Committee of Saint John (PSC – SJ) and maligning a Palestinian Gaza-born member of the group. . . .
MP Wayne Long shocked everyone by endorsing a dangerous comment from one of his followers, who accused a Canadian PSC-SJ activist of being a terrorist, with a chilling reply: ‘he is.’ We are appalled that MP Long exhibits a lack of empathy and disregard for the safety and privacy of his own constituents.
The video posted by Mr. Long referred to an event on 23 July 2024 where Mr. Long was approached by Palestine solidarity activists at the grand opening of the Saint John waterfront park officially named ‘Ihtoli-maqahamok – The Gathering Space.’ Activists demanded that the MP support an arms embargo on Israel and denounce the genocide in Gaza. Given Canada’s complicity and lack of action to hold Israel accountable, politicians arming a genocide are rightly being confronted in public settings across the country. MP Long’s refusal to support an arms embargo as well as his insensitive and irresponsible response only exacerbates the suffering of Palestinians in Gaza but also their family members in New Brunswick.”
Palestinian and Jewish Unity joins with other organizations and individuals in their call for MP Long to immediately resign in the interests of public trust as he has shown himself to be not fit for the role of public office. We also demand that the Liberal Party leadership immediately remove MP Wayne Long from its caucus and correspondingly investigate the unethical actions of their MP.
Let it be noted that a petition with over 3,100 signatures was directed to Justin Trudeau and the leadership of the Liberal Party, urging an investigation. Unfortunately, the Liberal Party has turned a blind eye to this petition and ignored it, which has allowed MP Wayne Long to continue his unethical behavior. The attitude of the Liberal Party leadership is, however, not surprising given its own unconditional support for Israel’s war crimes in Gaza and the occupied West Bank.
It is the hope of PAJU that the electors in Wayne Long’s riding of Saint John—Rothesay will express their displeasure of Mr. Long by ousting him in the next federal election!
Contact: info@paju.org
