New Democrat leadership contender MP Heather McPherson (Edmonton Strathcona) is facing criticism after sponsoring a Commons petition calling for an investigation into a Jewish charity co-founded by Heather Reisman, CEO of Indigo Books, and urging Canada to screen all Canadians returning from Israel for alleged war crimes.Blacklock's Reporter says the petition, E-6783, claims without citing sources that Canadian citizens and residents may have been involved in “serious violations of international law by Israel Defence Forces in the Middle East.” It specifically called for a probe into the Hesig Foundation, a scholarship charity co-founded by Reisman and her husband, and proposed investigations under the Crimes Against Humanity and War Crimes Act, creation of a government website to collect information from Gaza and West Bank victims, and screening by the Canada Border Services Agency of Canadians returning from Israel.McPherson declined to explain why she sponsored the petition. It was submitted not by a constituent but by New Democrat activist Mirella Russell of Vancouver, who has publicly expressed strong anti-Israel views. In 2025, Russell wrote on Facebook that Israel’s actions were “a stain on humanity’s conscience” and called for sanctions and cuts to diplomatic and economic ties..Reisman has long been a target of anti-Semitic protests and boycotts. Indigo lawyers argued in a 2024 Federal Court submission that she was subjected to “deliberate and malicious” slander.McPherson, the only MP in the NDP leadership race, was among 19 MPs who signed a 2025 election pledge accusing Israel of genocide, 14 of whom lost their seats. In a post-election podcast last May, she compared Israeli military action in Gaza to civilian deaths during World War Two, saying she felt a personal obligation to use her voice to protect innocent people.McPherson did not comment on the Holocaust comparison in the interview, nor did she respond yesterday to questions about the petition.
