Earlier last month on Sept. 4, Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East (CJPME) condemned ELLE Canada magazine’s decision to remove Ontario MPP Sarah Jama from their Aug. 19 article, “These Incredible Canadians Have Broken the Glass Ceiling.”
CJPME said in their press release that they are “alarmed that such decisions set a dangerous precedent in the Canadian media landscape,” as they believe the removal to be violating the recommendation of the “ethics of unpublishing” set by the Canadian Association of Journalists (CAJ). As the editor of a newspaper, I find myself agreeing with them. The recommendation posed by CAJ is that those in the publishing business should generally not unpublish and that there should be a policy set in place that considers the implication that in the age of digital journalism, everything is permanent.
While the original article is still available in print, ELLE Canada added a disclaimer to their online article stating that they edited the story’s contents “in order to protect everyone’s safety” due to concerning messages that had been posted online and received by the magazine. They also removed the byline from the story. However, in a post on X, Jama stated that she had not received any threats.
One point outlined by the CAJ’s ethics of unpublishing is that those responsible for publishing should “consider the implications of publishing before publication.” By removing Jama from their article, it is apparent that the team responsible for publishing at ELLE Canada did not consider this important guideline. By actively speaking out for a ceasefire in Gaza and choosing to wear a keffiyeh in parliament despite the ban of keffiyehs in the Ontario legislature, Jama has demonstrated that she has broken the glass ceiling of what it means to be an MPP actively engaged in politics.
In the deck of their article, ELLE Canada states that the Canadian individuals showcased are “paving the way for those behind them.” With the Ontario Progressive Conservatives having been the elected party in power since 2018, we need active MPPs like Jama to hold them accountable for their lackluster stance on issues of global importance. Doug Ford himself stated he was “not in favor” of protest encampments in May, his statement criticized by many including David Moscrop of TVO Today, who chided Ford for “bringing his folksy-uncle-premier bit to bear on encampments.”
On May 6, Jama joined MP Matthew Green to support students at McMaster University’s indefinite encampment. In her post on Instagram, she applauded the students for their work, saying, “We all have a responsibility to do everything we can in all of the places we occupy in our personal and political lives to call for an end to this violence.”
By removing Jama from their list of trailblazers that are “paving the way,” ELLE Canada has embarrassed themselves as a publishing house that, as per their own history as an organization, wished to elevate “women who were invested in key issues.”
By stating they are representing the “opinions of a political personality” but not “the opinions of the publishers of ELLE Canada and its parent company,” they are not abiding by this aim today.
In July, my editor’s note addressed Jama’s removal from caucus. Now, I find myself shocked to see her removed from yet another place that should be elevating her voice as an important figure in Canada’s current political climate. Few have been as brave in utilizing their voice as she has been.
Hopefully, we will see Jama featured in ELLE Canada’s next “trailblazers” list – whenever that may be. Until then, I hope as the representative of a paper that does its best to represent as many distinct groups of individuals as I am able, to see ELLE Canada take a more serious stance on their aims as a publication.
