A Canadian literary journal funded by taxpayers published a poem that appeared to support Hamas attacks on Israel, praising paragliders who flew into southern Israel during the October 7, 2023 attack. The poet Bahar Orang wrote in her piece titled 'FLOOD': "Praise the paragliders, their gentle ascension... and of course their triumphant descension." The journal, called The Ex-Puritan, received CA$22,000 (US$15,440) from the Canada Council for the Arts in 2024. This funding comes from about CA$364.3 million (US$255.8m) in taxpayer money allocated to the council that year. The council is now conducting an internal review following complaints about this edition of the journal.
Written locally by qwen2.5:14b on 2026-10-08,
using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the
same event (that is the story summary below).
Story summary
In October 2023, a poem titled "FLOOD" by Toronto poet Bahar Orang appeared in an issue of The Ex-Puritan, a literary journal that received CAD $22,000 from the Canada Council for the Arts. The poem praised Hamas fighters who attacked Israel using paragliders on October 7, 2023, which was one of the deadliest days in Israeli history with about 1,200 people killed. Orang wrote lines such as "Praise the paragliders... their triumphant descension" and "Praise October," suggesting support for Hamas' actions. The journal's funding by taxpayer money has sparked controversy over its publication of content supporting violence against Israel.
Written for “Canada October 7 Funding Controversy” on 2026-10-08,
grounded in this article and the 0 other(s) covering the same event.
Why this leaning score
The model judged this article politically coded and scored it -0.65, but all 2 of its quote(s) are attributed speech - words the article quotes from someone, not the article's own narration, so the score is not published.
Written under an earlier scoring contract, which gave a paragraph
rather than checkable quotes. Re-analysing this article replaces it.
Leaning score withheld for article 65887: attributed speech only · logged 2026-10-08
A Canadian literary journal funded by taxpayers published a poem that suggested support for the October 7 attacks and praised Hamas paragliders for 'their triumphant descension' on Israel.
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that → fund → Israel
The piece titled 'FLOOD' by Toronto poet Bahar Orang appeared in a new edition of online journal The Ex-Puritan.
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piece → title → Puritan
'Praise the paragliders, their gentle ascension, their unbroken morning, and of course their triumphant descension, their feet touching down,' Orang wrote.
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Orang → praise → course
Hamas fighters flew into southern Israel on paragliders as part of the heinous October 7 attack in 2023 that killed about 1,200 people.
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that → fly → people
'Praise October,' Orang continued, before praising the 'fighters, whose courage nourishes the world.
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courage → praise → world
She added: 'Praise their cunning, their patience, the tanks on fire, the enemy fleeing.
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enemy → add → fire
The Ex-Puritan received a CA$22,000 (US$15,440) grant in 2024, according to a database published by the Canada Council for the Arts.
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Puritan → receive → Arts
It is estimated that the council received around CA$364.3 million (US$255.8m) in taxpayer money that year, per the Canadian government.
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council → estimate → government
Toronto poet Bahar Orang wrote 'Praise the paragliders, their gentle ascension... and of course their triumphant descension' in a poem about Hamas' attacks on October 7, 2023
About 1,200 people were killed and more than 250 were taken hostage in the attack by Hamas on Israel
The award from the Canada Council for the Arts is a four-year operating grant with annual funding, according to the Globe and Mail.
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award → write → Globe
A logo for the council, which is directed by Michelle Chawla, currently appears on the bottom right side of the magazine's 'About Us' page.
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which → direct → page
The Canada Council has started an internal review of the funding over concerns raised by this edition.
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Council → start → edition
'While funded magazines have editorial independence, freedom of expression in Canada exists within a broader legal framework and is subject to limits under Canadian law,' Lise Ann Johnson, the council's director general of arts granting programs, told the outlet.
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Johnson → fund → outlet
'This is why we aim to carefully balance the importance of freedom of expression with applicable legal limits,' Johnson continued.
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Johnson → aim → limits
She said the council was an 'arm's–length public arts funder' whose 'mandate is to foster and promote the arts.'
On their website, The Ex Puritan says that it is 'grateful for the financial support of Canada Council for the Arts and the Ontario Arts Council.'
Orang, who was guest-editing, explained in an editorial note why the magazine had chosen to 'turn deliberately toward armed resistance' in this issue.
'We do this knowing that the enemy requires our despair, our detachment, our resignation, our complicity, our disdain for militants and our indulgence of liberalism,' she wrote.
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she → say → liberalism
The poet finished her thoughts by writing: 'We are not freeing Palestine; Palestine is freeing us.'
Ontario-based creative writer Ryanne Kap is listed as the journal's editor-in-chief.
The Canada Council for the Arts, directed by Michelle Chawla (pictured), previously granted the journal CAD $22,000
The poem appeared to voice support for Hamas' actions on October 7, 2023, which was the deadliest day in the history of Israel
Orang was guest-editing the special issue of the journal, whose editor-in-chief is Ryanne Kap
Israelis mourned at the site of the Nova music festival on Wednesday, where Hamas attacked during the Jewish holiday of Shemini Atzeret three years ago.
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Hamas → finish → Atzeret
Others also remembered the massacre at bomb shelters, intersections and in other communities that were targeted by Hamas militants.
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that → remember → militants
Footage captured that day showed militants gunning down people who were fleeing and going after those seeking protection in bomb shelters.
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who → capture → shelters
Hamas also took more than 250 people hostage as part of the attack.
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Hamas → take → attack
Many of the hostages were raped, gang raped, sexually tortured or mutilated, according to the Civil Commission on October 7 Crimes Against Women and Children.
Israel's retaliation for the vile Hamas attacks has killed tens of thousands of Palestinians.
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retaliation → rap → Palestinians
The Palestinian Ministry of Health said at least 74,000 Palestinians had been killed, per Al Jazeera.
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Palestinians → say → Jazeera
It has also destroyed much of Gaza and displaced most of its 2 million residents from their homes.
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It → destroy → homes
The Daily Mail has reached out to the Ex-Puritan and the Canada Council for the Arts for further comment.
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Mail → reach → comment
The Aporia
