About IJV

Independent Jewish Voices was founded in 2008 by a group of Canadian Jews working to build the Palestine solidarity movement within Canada.  We are a member-driven grassroots organization with chapters across the country helping build the movement for Palestinian liberation. IJV has more than two dozen chapters across Canada, from Halifax to Victoria, and a national team that supports on-the-ground organizing and national campaigns.

Our members’ activism has guided IJV’s development over the past two decades. Our work includes Palestine advocacy in the Canadian context, opposing anti-Palestinian racism and antisemitism in Canada, supporting our allies in the Palestine solidarity movement, and participating in the global Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions movement.

In 2024, we proudly declared Independent Jewish Voices an anti-Zionist organization. This position continues the radical Jewish tradition and our commitment to social justice. We recognize the connection of the Nakba to the current genocide of Palestinians being carried out by the Israeli state, the continuing aggression of the Israeli state across the region, and Zionism as a Jewish supremacist ideology.

Our Basis of Unity

IJV’s Basis of Unity is the minimum set of positive commitments that all IJV members and supporters agree to when joining the organization.

IJV Basis of Unity

We are a group of Jews and supporters from diverse backgrounds and affiliations. Our Basis of Unity reflects our fundamental shared commitments as we organize together in solidarity for the liberation of the Palestinian people.

Justice for Palestinians. We work in solidarity with the Palestinian struggle for freedom and self-determination. We endeavour to be accountable to our Palestinian allies in our organizing. We affirm that human rights are universal, inalienable for all people, and must be upheld without exception.

Collective liberation. We believe that none of us are free until all of us are free. We are building a community which models this belief in our actions and organizing. We strive to be inclusive, justice-seeking, democratic, and open to diverse ideas and practices. We oppose all forms of racism and discrimination, including anti-Palestinian racism (APR) and antisemitism.

Anti-colonial solidarity. We work for a more just and equitable world. We are in solidarity with Indigenous Peoples worldwide in their efforts to overcome colonization, both past and present, and support their struggles for decolonization. We oppose settler colonialism, ethnic cleansing, genocide and systems of apartheid wherever we find them.

Jewish community building. We organize inclusive justice-oriented Jewish spaces that hold Palestine solidarity at their core. Our members’ Jewish identity is central to our organizing.

If these values resonate with you, learn about becoming a member.