Barbara Kay is a columnist with the National Post.
Kay is a graduate of the University of Toronto where she earned an undergraduate degree in English literature. She received a Master of Arts from McGill University and subsequently taught literature at Concordia University and several CEGEPs.[1]
Beginning her journalism career as a book reviewer, Kay branched out into writing op/eds for the Post before becoming a columnist in 2003.
She also was a contributor and board member of the revived Cité libre in the 1990s.[1]
In 2006 she was criticized for a series of articles accusing Quebec politicians of supporting Hezbollah during the 2006 Israel-Lebanon conflict. In 2007, the Quebec Press Council released a decision condemning Kay for "undue provocation" and "generalizations suitable to perpetuate prejudices".[2]
In 2007, she wrote a column titled "Not in my backyard, either" in which she criticized Hasidic Jews for not integrating into the neighbourhoods in which they live and for being "self-segregating" and "cult-like".[3] In 2008, she wrote another column criticizing Hasids in the Toronto area. She was accused of hating Jews as a result,[4] her own Jewishness notwithstanding.
She a member of the Board of Governors of the student newspaper, The Prince Arthur Herald.[5]
Her son is National Post Managing Editor Jonathan Kay.[6]