Samantha Pearson

Overview

Samantha Pearson [Sam Pearson] was fired from her directorship of a sexual assault center after signing a letter denying Hamas terrorists raped Israeli women in October 2023. The same letter she signed also spread hatred of Canada and Israel.

Pearson was the director of the University of Alberta (U of A) Sexual Assault Centre until she was fired in November 2023. U of A is located in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.

The incident occurred during Israel’s war against Hamas, called “Swords of Iron.” Israel launched the war after a series of Hamas terror attacks and war crimes against Israeli civilians, including mass murder, torture, rape, beheadings and kidnappings, which were executed on October 7, 2023. The attacks left approximately 1,200 Israelis dead, hundreds kidnapped and thousands wounded. For more information, see the Canary Mission page on Hamas.

Denying Hamas Sexual Atrocities

In November 2023, Pearson signed an open letter titled: “Stand with Palestine: Call on Political Leaders to End Their Complicity in Genocide!” The since-deleted letter referred to the “unverified accusation that Palestinians were guilty of sexual violence.”

On October 7, 2023, Hamas raped women next to the bodies of dead friends. Some were raped and then shot in the head. Others, including young girls, were raped and murdered or mutilated in other ways.
The letter was co-authored by Sarah Jama, an anti-Israel activist and Member of the Ontario Provincial Parliament, as well as Susan Kim, a city councilor in Victoria, British Columbia. The letter was reportedly signed by 2,100 people and it was addressed to members of the Canadian Parliament.

Promoting Hatred of Canada and Israel

The same letter that Pearson signed said: “We, the undersigned, residing in so-called Canada, urge Canadian political leaders to end their complicity in the ongoing massacres and genocide in Gaza, Occupied Palestine.”

The letter further accused the Canadian government of failing to condemn “Israeli apartheid and occupation,” claiming that “by failing to recognize Israeli occupation as ‘terrorist’ and only directing this term at Palestinian resistance, you perpetuate an Islamophobic trope.”

Among anti-Israel activists, the term “resistance” is a euphemism for terrorism and is used to glorify anti-Israel and anti-Semitic violence.  

On November 18, 2023, U of A president Bill Flanagan released a statement saying that Pearson was no longer part of the sexual assault center. The statement read: “The recent improper and unauthorized use of the name of the University of Alberta's Sexual Assault Centre in endorsing an open letter has raised understandable concerns from members of our community and the public. Effective immediately, the director of the centre is no longer employed by the university.”

Social Media and Weblinks

University Website: https://www.ualberta.ca/current-students/sexual-assault-centre/staff.html [Deleted]

LinkedIn:https://www.linkedin.com/in/sam-pearson-369586169[Deleted]