Some fellow passengers are questioning why an Orthodox Jewish man was removed from an Air Canada Jazz flight in Montreal last week for praying.
The man was a passenger on a Sept. 1 flight from Montreal to New York City when the incident happened.
The airplane was heading toward the runway at the Pierre Elliott Trudeau International Airport when eyewitnesses said the Orthodox man began to pray.
Jewish man removed from airplane for praying
Some fellow passengers are questioning why an Orthodox Jewish man was removed from an Air Canada Jazz flight in Montreal last week for praying.
The man was a passenger on a Sept. 1 flight from Montreal to New York City when the incident happened.
The airplane was heading toward the runway at the Pierre Elliott Trudeau International Airport when eyewitnesses said the Orthodox man began to pray.
“He was clearly a Hasidic Jew,” said Yves Faguy, a passenger seated nearby. “He had some sort of cover over his head. He was reading from a book.
”He wasn’t exactly praying out loud but he was lurching back and forth,“ Faguy added.
The action didn’t seem to bother anyone, Faguy said, but a flight attendant approached the man and told him his praying was making other passengers nervous.
”The attendant actually recognized out loud that he wasn’t a Muslim and that she was sorry for the situation but they had to ask him to leave,“ Faguy said.
The man, who spoke neither English nor French, was escorted off the airplane.
Air Canada Jazz termed the situation ”delicate,“ but says it received more than one complaint about the man’s behaviour.
The crew had to act in the interest of the majority of passengers, said Jazz spokeswoman Manon Stewart.
”The passenger did not speak English or French, so we really had no choice but to return to the gate to secure a translator,“ she said.
The airline is not saying if the man was told he was not allowed to pray, but a spokesperson said the man was back on board the next flight to New York.
Jewish leaders in Montreal criticized the move as insensitive, saying the flight attendants should have explained to the other passengers that the man was simply praying and doing no harm.
Hasidic Rabbi Ronny Fine said he often prays on airplanes, but typically only gets curious stares.
”If it’s something that you’re praying in your own seat and not taking over the whole plane, I don’t think it should be a problem,” said Fine.
The Jewish group B’nai Brith Canada has offered to help give Air Canada crews sensitivity training.
jew4justice
does anybody know who this person is. I can see a multimillion dollar lawsuit against air canada brewing…
please email me if you know who this induvidual is. I would like to make a civil rights lawyer happy!!
If it was a safety issue thats one thing but just being uncomfortable is rediculus!!
shame on those french bigots!!
anti anti-semite
who are these bnei brith that wanna give air canda a "sensitive" training"? jews4justice is right someone should sue this company, and fi only to show the world that we jews dont let ourself be pushed aroud
giving up
the french are the worsed.
if a muslim guy would be walking on the plane with a bumbbelt they would have to call the corprate office to see if they have permission to question him.
the idiots are running the asylum!
yikes.
canadianlover
what’s worse then a frenchman?
a canadian frenchman!
blame canada
lets all pray
i agree with jew4justice he/she is totally right.
mom in ch
giving up..
AMEN to that.
in the know
just ny the way – it was an israeli, and he couldnt talk english (or french) so they couldnt communicate – thats why they sent him off…
thats how it is
thats how it is folks. in our society its all right to be anti semtic, but G-d frobid to say anything else to any other type of religion.
things got to change!!!
canadianlovers frend:)
this is sick, those bloody frenchies! we hate france and hey… canadianlover…good one! canadian can have many many meanings…lol
vivi
i heard it on the radio and i was like :why doesnt theses poeple use their brain???????
its like wtvr!!
simmy
this is plain ridiculous, jew4justice is right
Milhouse
Jewish leaders in Montreal criticized the move as insensitive, saying the flight attendants should have explained to the other passengers that the man was simply praying and doing no harm.
How were the crew to know that? They couldn’t communicate with him, because he didn’t speak either of Canada’s languages, so how exactly were they to know that he was harmless? How were they to know that he wasn’t steeling himself to take over the plane, or tp set off a bomb or something? And how could they explain this to the passengers if they didn’t know it themsleves?
Even if they actually knew that he was praying (and how were they to know that?) how does that reassure anyone? The danger is precisely from religious fanatics, so praying makes him <i>more</i> likely to be a threat, not less.
As it is, it appears that they took him back to where there was someone who could talk to him, ascertained that he wasn’t in any danger, and put him on the next plane. He was delayed for what? An hour? Better that than that they should ignore the next terrorist who’s saying vidduy before blowing up the plane, chas veshalom, out of a sense of “respect for religion”.
Chayali
OHMYGOSH! This is mamosh appalling. I hope a huge lawsuit ensues and that we will be able to declare "Didan Notzach!" with Moshiach Tzidkeinu immediately!
Better Safe
In a case of uncertianty, it’s better to err on the side of safety. Blame the over sensitivity on security on the terrorists who created it. Better 100 religious jews "on the next plane" as a precaution, then one terriorist gets through (they dress like hassidic jews too, sometimes!). So long as the security personell are reasonable, sent this gent on his way after a reasonable investigation showed him innocent, be willing to expect some inconvenience and learn to live with it in the post 9/11 world. We do, after all, look and act a bit out of the norm (even if this "unusual" is a higher midrega than the average.
bochur
it seems that the main reason there was a problem, was because of his ‘shuckling’ coupled with his davening. in the article it seems they clearly recognized he was Jewish. If u were on a flight and ur seatmate was shaking back and forth and mumbling in a foreign language you woud also be a little concerned.
Ve-ahafta
Rebbe Elimilech used to always quote "Hashem has mercy over all his creatures" referring to animals. You are supposed to be chassidim and you spew vitrolic hatred for an entire nationality of people made b’tzelem Elokim.
The Bnei Noach laws include guarding the life of your neighbor right? They were doing their best to protect the passengers. Amen Millhouse.
declarative approach
milhouse- you seem to be overly canadian-patriotic,
nice logic there but totally unrealistic,
dont u realize that had it been a muslim they wouldnt have
so much as batted an eye, else they wouldve been fired on
the spot for g-d knows what!
they wouldnt want to appear anti-muslim g-d forbid!!!
POA: we jews should BOYCOTT jazz airline!!!
To milhouse
OMGosh! What audacity!
YOUR NOT ALLOWED TO PRAY!?
where is a person’s freedom? that’s totally insane.
why is it that a simple stewardess has more power over what you do than your mom.
Mashiach now!
THAT GUY BETTER SUE OTHERWISE OTHER AIRLINES WILL THINK THEY CAN GET AWAY WITH IT.
AND -sometimes I need to daven on the plane.
millhouse, why are you on THEIR side? They could worry about themselfs.
Good excuse to emit their true feelings.
was every hostess on that flight new on the job? if not, surely they would have come across such a scene many times before and would have known that this guy was doing the same thing as all those that also didn’t blow up the plane. It seems like a touch of anti semitism involved. " if we can pick on the Jew, why not" (even if we know deep down what we’re really doing…..
My brother once had his Tfillin taken apart by security.
Moishy Goldstein
The airline should definitely be sued!
FREQUENT FLYER
"The airplane was heading toward the runway at the Pierre Elliott Trudeau International Airport when eyewitnesses said the Orthodox man began to pray. "
WHAT WAS THE GUY DOING OUT OF HIS SEAT!? WHILE A PLANE IS GOING TOWARD THE RUNAWAY I THINK THAT COULD HAVE BEEN THE MAIN ISSUE TOO.
Motte
whoever said if it was a muslim they wouldn’t d o a thing? Come on of course they would.
I think it is a bit insensitive but we should be happy they are worried for securtity and not overreact the whole time. We should also use our commonsense and realise, as somebody said above, that peoplea re nervous of religiuous fanatics right now. Come on guys be a little bit less sensitive and a bit more reasonable. It was silly but not antisemitic……..
please
I think its time for everyone to calm down and think before they write.
They didn’t arrest the man, harm him or tell him he can’t daven.
All they did is get him to a place where he could explain his actions.
Once they found he was safe- they let him continue fly.
Do you want to be safe or sorry.
And for all who think they wouldn’t stop a muslim doing the same thing – welcome to the world of 2006 – of course they would, and do.
Anyone who flies knows that airlines are paranoid and neurotic about safety – and rightly so.
Let’s act mature and responsible in our reactions to issues, (and this can be applied to ALL issues that are descussed on this site) and then maybe our reactions will be respected.
please
I think its time for everyone to calm down and think before they write.
They didn’t arrest the man, harm him or tell him he can’t daven.
All they did is get him to a place where he could explain his actions.
Once they found he was safe- they let him continue fly.
Do you want to be safe or sorry.
And for all who think they wouldn’t stop a muslim doing the same thing – welcome to the world of 2006 – of course they would, and do.
Anyone who flies knows that airlines are paranoid and neurotic about safety – and rightly so.
Let’s act mature and responsible in our reactions to issues, (and this can be applied to ALL issues that are descussed on this site) and then maybe our reactions will be respected.
Gilad
Totally ridiculous
who cares
mntl to ny is exactly 1,5 hours why did he need to daven in the plain, by the time they allow you to stend up, to the time you need to put your belt on again you have ver little time to daven and i remember my flight from philadelphia (almost sure) to mntl, there was noway to move in the that plain, and if this guy started shuckeling i imagine the whole plain started chuckeling with him.
but yes french canadians arent the brightest
To antisemite
Bnei brith is a group whiche helps
alot schools and ect..
thats hu they are
izzy c
i was flying all over the world the past few month, im talking about 20 flights i never had a problem.im guesing some not frum jew made the flight atendent nervous which had him removed,
Some comments
Now I know what to do in case I forgot something at the terminal! He probably did not have enough Kavana. I wouldn’t mind if they did this to the preachers in the trains. Next time wait until takeoff. Airlines should get a line on interpretors. Grate Job profilling, you save the passengers from being uncomfortable. Its a sad state when so many people can’t recongnize prayor.
moshiach beliver
ad mosai
ad mosai
ad mosai
we need moshiach now everyone stop the bikering and lashan harah
amen
we need moshiach
mr. nice goy
I guess it’s the consequences of a time when people are being conditioned to fear the other, whether it’s Muslim men going to the washroom (unlike other people do, right?), or a non-English/French speaking Jewish man davening. I think anyone who thinks it’s okay that people are arbitrarily detained and must "explain their actions" is willing to cede basic civil rights to a degree none of us, regardless of belief, ought to be comfortable with.
A concerned jew
the guy that was davening is an IDIOT! he should have stayed in his seat instead of making a Chillul Hashem,
where in Shulchan Aruch does it say that while on a plane that is taking of you neeed to stand during davening, g-d will forgive you for sitting and not making a chillul hashem
Yates Ha-cohen
I agree with the above comment about better to be safe than sorry. There have been several instances in Israel where palestinians have dressed up as Chassidim and killed innocent jews. Do not be so naive as to think that cannot happen here. Wake up yidden.
Milhouse
Where on earth did all you people get the idea that he got out of his seat? Why are you all going on about how he could have davened at the airport, or whatever? What, you think he got up in the middle of takeoff and started putting on tallis and tefillin, making sure to whack everyone within two seats of him with his tzitzis? Where is any of this in the story? He was sitting in his seat, and was obviously saying either tefillas haderech or tehillim, or maybe even learning.
This shouldn’t be too hard to understand: NOBODY DID ANYTHING WRONG. Not the yid, and not the other passengers, and not the crew. The yid did what he was meant to do, the passengers didn’t understand and felt concerned, so they reported it to the crew as they were meant to do, the crew tried to ask him what he was doing, in both English and French, and when he didn’t understand either they went back to the terminal to get someone who could speak to him. That was what they were meant to do.
This is a good result. It’s a success story. The system worked. One planeload of people were slightly inconvenienced by being delayed 20 minutes, one passenger was significantly inconvenienced by having to wait for the next plane, and nobody was blown up or killed, or arrested or suffered any indignities.
simmer down there!!!
let me tell u, dearest above commentators,
reading the shaklah vetarya debate
was quite entertaining, if u dont mind me saying!
classic example of "two jews, three opinions!"
but i think a most crucial lesson must be learnt,
ahavas yisroel comes first and foremost, before even pretending to be the detective, prosecutor, or defendant, all of which we have absolutely no right to be!!!
and why are people writing so vulgarly?!
heaven help!!! ie: the idiot word in cap letters
and the dripping sarcasm and blame!!!
WE DONT KNOW ANY PRECISE DETAILS AND SHOULDNT BE SHAMING PEOPLE,
who ever said your blood is redder or holier than this israeli man’s or anyone elses, mind u??!!
actually, instead perhaps we should be admiring this mans religious actions and maybe his davening gave hashem more nachas then all of our arguing! ever thought of that?!
rosh hashana is upon us, let our actions, speech (writing), and thoughts reflect it!!!!!!
p.s. sorry i didnt mean to end up writing a sermon but it must be pointed out!!!
thanx milhouse
concerned jew-
and standing is gonna make a chilul Hashem? maybe i shouldn’t give out pamphlets for mivtzaim, some people get nervous and it might make a chilul Hashem. three cheers for milhouse and simers down here who used their LOGIC!!! if the same story wouldv happened and it was some palestinian dressed as an Arab, then u wudve blamed the airport, right? stop being so prejudice! the airport did nothing wrong! wut wud u do if someone didnt understand ur language! so they got a translator, good for them, they did the SAFE choice!!! stop crtisizing- why couldnt he daven when he came here? its only an hour and a half, maybe there was an emergency and thats y he came to begin with CHAS VSHALOM! we just finished reading pirkei avos, hevei dan es kol ha’adom l’kaf zchus!!!!
clearly antisemitism
it is one thing if a Yid will get up to daven while the plane is on the runway, seatbelt signs are illuminated, and the pilot askes over the loudspeaker that all passengers be seated. even then i wouldnt say that antisemitism isent a facter. from the above article, however, this is clearly a case of anti semitism, which is as a much a part of nature as the Jewish people are part of history. nowhere in the article does it mention any form of misbehavior what so ever, exept for "making other passengers nerveous", whose ignorence is b.s. every single high school drop out knows what a hasidic jew is, for pet’s sake, and i dont beleive that neighboring passengers were all that concerned. what i do know for a fact is the evil demenour hiding behing a cheerfull plastic smile of a flight attendent who by the nature of her job, like all others in the people pleasing industry, have to please an entire day of costomers and keep up the false face. in theat they are well trained. people who work in the people pleasing buisness are also known to fly into a rage at their first oppertunity, usually in privat or at home after a day’s hard work, smiling to costomers. all it takes is the presence of a harmless jew that will ignite the inner reality of a Goy and blow her cover. im sure they are also well trained in the fine art of reapeting a set of lines from a flight attendent text book "sir, im going to have to ask you to leave", with the same polite smile as when they say "good morning", as if anybody asked her, and as if i was the first and only costomer. dosent anybody realize that you are probably the hundredth person to be offerd a drink, that very day? Given the nature of their job, and given the nature of a Goy, at the sight of a Yid who is praying, which flight attendent wouldnt feel the urge to go over and "have to ask" him to leave?
observatory
interesting commentary above,
and i hope that they wouldnt hesitate
to do the same to a muslim, yimach shimom.
and remember,
although jews are a minority, we contain superiority!!!!
kudos to ‘simmer down there’ written above!
Yasher Koach Please and Frequent Flyer
I agree with "please" and "frequent flyer." It is understandably nerve wrecking when you first read the article, and my first impression was to agree with all those who said they should sue the airline. After reading the comment from "please," I’ve come to realize that what the airlines did was totally 100% right. If that man was out of his seat when HE WAS SUPPOSED TO HAVE HIS SEATBELT ON, then there’s really nothing to negotiate. Coming from Israel, and I’m sure he goes every year, he should by now at least understand the basic laws of flying. Until you’re at least 10 minutes in the air can you take off your seatbelt. What was this person doing standing up when he was supposed to be sitting down? I’m surprised that they let him to continue traveling after he disregarded the basic rule of flying. The thing with him davening should come only after it’s understood what he was doing standing up when the plane was on the runway. People shouldn’t always be so quick to judge the olam. Maybe it starts with ourselves or our friends. Just because he’s a frum yid, it doesn’t automatically make the yid right. I think everyone should calm down on their insults, boycotts and whatever other mishegas they have in mind, and really think things over. This man wasn’t arrested, charged or anything of that sort. They just questioned him, and when they found that he was okay, they let him go.