Montreal's Jewish Public Library is moving local children's author Elisa Gravel's books into closed collections in response to her illustrated messages critical of Israel.

The Jewish Public Library of Montreal has moved the books of popular Montreal children's author Elisa Gravel into a locked folder after Jewish advocacy groups labeled some of her social media posts as anti-Semitic.

Gravel is “one of Quebec's most beloved children's book authors. His work is lively, thoughtful, funny and educational,” the Jewish Public Library said in a statement. The library declined to comment on the situation and referred the CJN to its statement.

Moving these titles to closed stacks “ensures that the books are available through our catalog, but also acknowledges the sensitivity regarding the author's social media posts.” This decision reflects a desire to address community concerns while ensuring access to diverse perspectives,” the library said.

“JPL is committed to fostering critical thinking and opposing anti-Semitism and discrimination of any kind,” the statement said.

“As Freedom to Read Week approaches, we invite all those interested in intellectual freedom to check out our banned books and participate in our upcoming program, Ignite Minds, Not Books, on February 20. book censorship, furthering our commitment to providing a platform for diverse perspectives for informed discourse in our community.”

The dispute concerns images Gravel has posted and shared on various social media platforms since the start of the Israel-Hamas war. The cartoons accuse Israel of committing genocide against Palestinians and contain anti-Semitic tropes such as blood libel, according to some Jewish organizations.

We've seen the rise of anti-Semitism and conspiracy theories from Montreal children's author Elise Gravel.

For example, in the first image, he invokes the anti-Semitic trope of ritual murder. “They are convinced that we agree with the idea of ​​destroying them … pic.twitter.com/XhiFI57rmu

— CIJA (@CIJAinfo) February 6, 2024

One post, which Gravel deleted after a public outcry, accused Israel of harvesting the skins of Palestinians.

“The fact that Israel has the world's largest skin bank collected from Palestinians should be proof enough for anyone,” the post said.

He later took it down, saying he never intended to spread false information.

The Center for Israel and Jewish Affairs shared Gravel's post: “They are convinced that we agree with the idea of ​​exterminating the Palestinians like insects. Even children, even newborns.'

CIJA described the post as an “anti-Semitic trope of ritual murder” and asked, “Who does Gravel 'they' refer to?” He asked. Gravel has since updated the post and replaced “them” with “Netanyahu and his allies.”

“We have seen an increase in anti-Semitism and conspiracy-mongering content by Montreal children's author Elise Gravel,” CIJA wrote. The Jewish organization offered to meet with Gravel to help him understand how his comments contribute to the rise of anti-Semitism since the start of the war.

“Criticism of Israel is not necessarily anti-Semitic. But to do so by invoking anti-Semitic myths,” said CIJA.

Gravel is known for more than 30 books published in 12 languages. He won the Governor General's Award for Children's Illustration for his book.La clé à molette 2012 and his books are widely available in public libraries and taught in elementary schools.

Gravel, for his part, says his posts are not against Israel, but against the Netanyahu government.

“I blame the government and its actions, not the people. If I do or say something that sounds different, please point it out. I strongly oppose anti-Semitism in any form, and I understand that unsubstantiated claims like the one I've shared contribute to it,” he said in a Facebook post.

“It's not going to work for people who are aggressively trying to bully me and try to shut me up. I know why you're doing this, and I take it as a sign that my voice matters. I don't mind giving up; I have had a good career and am ready to retire if necessary. The tragedy that is unfolding is much bigger and more important than my books.”