FREDERICTON – A national legal group has apologized and begun an internal review after facing widespread criticism for cancelling a keynote speech by a prominent Syrian refugee.
The Advocates’ Society last month rescinded an invitation to Tareq Hadhad, owner of the Nova Scotia confectioner Peace by Chocolate to speak at an event in June after some members expressed concern with the refugee-turned-entrepreneur’s posts about the ongoing Middle East conflict.
A May 27, 2024, post by Hadhad on the social media platform X talks about the Israel-Hamas war, saying children should wake up to the sounds of birds not bombs and “this genocide must be stopped.”
In a statement, Hadhad said he believes peace comes from having honest, uncomfortable conversations and that grieving the “suffering of one group does not mean the exclusion of another.”
Several organizations including the Canadian Civil Liberties Association, the South Asian Bar Association, the Canadian Muslim Lawyers Association and over 50 legal scholars have voiced their concern about the nonprofit’s decision to cancel Hadhad’s invitation.
The 6,000-member Advocates’ Society said in a statement that a special task force is now working on recommendations for the dinner but officials did not reply to a question about whether Hadhad would be invited back.
“Our members have expressed deep concerns with the way our decisions were made, the basis for them and with the lack of diverse consultation in our deliberations,” the statement says. “We are sorry and regret the harm we have caused.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 8, 2025.
