The Toronto Police Service is walking back a podcast it designed to promote itself as a “progressive” police force dedicated to “combatting Islamophobia” after sparking outrage online.
The cancellation comes only two episodes into what was supposed to be an entire season.
In the podcast episode, two officers proudly announce a new requirement for law enforcement officers to undergo a “foundations of Islam” course as part of a new training initiative aimed at “combatting Islamophobia.”
The pair also boasted about the high number of Muslim “reverts”, or those who have returned to the Islamic faith—as opposed to “converts”—in the fallout of Oct. 7.
In a statement posted online on Tuesday, the official TPS X account wrote that the episode “caused significant upset and concern in the Jewish community and beyond.”
“We recognize the Jewish community’s profound pain and anguish as a result of October 7th and the ensuing rise of anti-Semitism. I have personally heard from the community about the impact of this podcast, and I’m truly sorry. Our commitment to protecting our Jewish communities remains unwavering,” said TPS Chief Myron Demkiw.
The training was revealed during the second episode of “The Project Olive Branch Podcast,” an online series dedicated to tackling anti-Muslim hate crimes in the region.
In the second episode, Muslim liaison officers, Haroon Siddiqui and Farhan Ali, highlighted several TPS initiatives under the Islamophobia training umbrella both within the force and in the broader community.
For example, Siddiqui and Ali noted a newly launched training module on “the fundamentals of Islam” is now mandatory for all officers—including non-uniformed officers.
Canadians have responded with negative reactions online with some critics pointing to the police service’s past lax handling of anti-Israel protests and concerns about antisemitism.
For years, the TPS has been roundly criticized for their soft-handed approach to pro-Palestine protests.
They faced backlash last winter, for instance, when a video went viral showing Toronto police officers handing coffee to demonstrators at an anti-Israel protest.
According to a statement made by TPS last summer, Toronto’s hate crime incidents increased more than 50 per cent last year, with officers responding to an average of five hate crime-related calls per day.
Notably, in that same announcement, TPS also acknowledged antisemitism remained the top category for hate crime occurrences.