A Canadian-based model and former Miss Slovakia who has publicly defended Israel after October 7, has described receiving death threats and antisemitic abuse.
Miriam Mattova, who lives in Toronto, told Israel Hayom newspaper that she has had a barrage of hateful messages after an incident involving an Uber driver, but says she refuses to be intimidated into hiding her Jewish identity.
The female Uber driver allegedly told her to get out of the cab after hearing Mattova talking about Israel on her phone.
“I began receiving an enormous amount of death threats, antisemitic harassment, just because I’m Jewish,” she said.
The abuse has had a profound impact on her everyday life. Mattova said she had reported the threats to Toronto police and its hate crimes unit.
“I have 24-hour security because of this,” she said. “I don’t leave my apartment after dark, you know, my life changed drastically.”
Among the messages she received was one stating: “I hope someone finishes what Hitler started.”
Others targeted her family, including a message suggesting Hitler should have murdered all her relatives.
Mattova said the verbal attacks on her began after the incident last November, when she was travelling home in Toronto in an Uber booked by a friend.
During the journey, she began a FaceTime call with another friend and spoke about a recent visit to Israel.
She alleged that the driver suddenly stopped the car in the middle of an intersection and told her to get out, saying she was uncomfortable having her in the vehicle.
When Mattova asked why, the driver allegedly replied that they did not drive Jewish people.
“At that moment, I chose to step out of the car, not out of fear but out of clarity. When someone reveals open discrimination, there is no reason to remain in that space,” Mattova told The Jerusalem Post at the time.
Miriam Mattova (Photo-YouTube/Miss Universe Canada 2019)[Missing Credit]
Uber subsequently contacted her to offer a refund and later told her they would speak to the driver, according to reports.
Mattova spoke of the incident on Instagram, prompting individuals come forward saying they had experienced something similar. However, it also sparked antisemitic comments on her social media.
Mattova said the abuse frequently appears beneath her public photographs, meaning that members of her family, including her mother and grandmother, can see it.
In her interview with Israel Hayom, she said: “And you know what the worst thing is? That I’m actually used to it now. Like, I’m not even shocked by it.”
“The internet did not create antisemitism, but it can make hatred feel consequence free,” she said, warning that society was becoming desensitised to online intimidation.
“We’re normalising death threats. We’re normalising harassment.”
Working with her lawyer, Howard Levitt, she has raised concerns with Meta about the prevalence of threats made through anonymous accounts.
“Deleting comments is not a solution. It doesn’t change anything,” she argued.
Mattova, who moved to Toronto from Slovakia three years ago, wants social media companies to respond to credible death threats within 24 hours, remove accounts responsible and use identifying information, including IP addresses, to help prevent offenders from repeatedly creating new profiles.
She has also advocated linking verified identification to social media accounts.
Discussions with Meta’s legal team were ongoing at the time of her interview, she said.
“This is not about censorship,” she explained. “People must be free to disagree, criticise, debate, including on difficult political issues, I agree. “But there’s a difference between expressing an opinion and threatening or intimidating someone.”
She believes the issue extends beyond antisemitism, affecting anyone subjected to online bullying and harassment. Her message to people who witness abuse is to report it rather than assume someone else will intervene.
“I don’t want my story to be about being afraid. I want it to be about what we choose to do when someone tries to intimidate us into silence.”
Speaking publicly has also affected her modelling career. Mattova said she had lost professional opportunities since becoming more vocal about her Jewish identity and support for Israel. Her public relations agency ended its relationship with her on October 9 2023, telling her she had become “too political”.
“I remember asking myself, since when did condemning terrorism become political?” she said.
For Mattova, the determination to continue speaking out is closely connected to her grandmother, a 91-year-old Holocaust survivor who regularly visits schools to educate young people about her experiences.
Her grandmother’s family lived in the mountains of Slovakia before being discovered and deported to concentration camps. Mattova’s great-grandfather was sent to Sachsenhausen and never returned, while her grandmother and great-grandmother were deported to Perezino.
When Mattova once asked her grandmother how the Holocaust had been allowed to happen, the answer was brief: “because people were silent.”
“My grandmother’s generation paid an unimaginable price for what happens when hatred is allowed to grow in silence. I don’t want my generation to make the same mistake,” she said.
Mattova is careful not to equate the online abuse she has experienced with the persecution endured by her family during the Holocaust. However, she believes their history carries a responsibility to challenge antisemitism wherever it appears.
“I couldn’t speak about the importance of remembering history and then remain silent when antisemitism affected my own life,” she said.
Her support for Israel is similarly rooted in her Jewish identity and family history. After October 7, she visited Kibbutz Be’eri, where seeing the destruction firsthand brought the Hamas attacks into sharper focus.
“I’m proud of my Jewish heritage, and I believe Israel has the right to defend itself and protect its citizens,” she said.
Although she has received support, Mattova said the experience can feel isolating, particularly as her relatives live in Slovakia and she is without family nearby in Toronto. She also said she feels safer in Israel than in Canada.
“I’m not going to sugarcoat things. It really gets hard.”
Nevertheless, she remains determined to live openly as a Jew and encourage others to do the same.
“I know who I am. And I refuse to let other people’s hatred dictate how openly I live my Jewish identity.”
She added: “If you see something happening, report it. Don’t stay silent. Be loud and proud. Don’t hide your Stars of David.”
“We cannot do this on our own,” she said. “It’s so important to always come together and fight this fight together.”
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