Audrey Loeb was wearing a button recently while at breakfast in a Copenhagen hotel. A waiter approached her, leaned over, and said, “I can’t tell you how much it means to me that you’re wearing that button. I am Israeli.” “It was the most heartfelt response I’ve gotten since we started this campaign,” Audrey says.

The button reads “I Denounce Antisemitism”, and through the leadership of Audrey and the support of her friend Helen O’Sullivan, approximately 25,000 of these buttons have been printed and distributed to community members and allies across the GTA.

The idea for the campaign came to Audrey after October 7th. Like all of us, she was horrified by what had occurred. She wanted to take action. In conversation with a friend, Audrey said, “I wish there was a way for those who aren’t Jewish to show their solidarity and support.” From this, the idea for a simple but powerful button-wearing initiative was born. Audrey brought the idea to her friend Helen—who is Catholic, and who undertook Jewish Studies at York University—and Helen supported Audrey in promoting the campaign. Working with UJA, and the Simon Wiesenthal Centre, thousands of these buttons have been distributed among friends and associates, at community events and within the networks of local leaders.

Wearing an I Denounce Antisemitism button is a simple way to take a public stand against hate. Though Audrey is happy that many Jewish community members are wearing the buttons, she and Helen believe it’s even more important that allies wear the buttons as often as they can. Audrey has been wearing her button since the first ones were made, and the only response she has received is “I like your button.” She then asks if the person would like one and 99% of the time they say yes. She gives them a button and asks them to wear it, not stick it in a drawer.

“Not speaking up is harmful; silence is a tacit form of approval for the hateful antisemitic speech happening around us,” says Audrey, ” But as Audrey experienced in Copenhangen, and as Helen wrote in a letter announcing the campaign, “when non-Jewish people wear the button for support, it is akin to giving your Jewish friends a hug and making it known that you do not approve of this antisemitism at this challenging time.”

If you’d like I Denounce Antisemitism buttons to wear yourself and to share with others, reach out to us at info@jewishtoronto.com about how you can get yours.