Today marks Yom HaShoah - the Day of (remembrance of) the Holocaust and the Heroism. Friends of Simon Wiesenthal Center for Holocaust Studies (FSWC) was pleased to host a special event this evening to commemorate the victims and survivors of the Holocaust. We held a special candle-lighting service and then screened the Moriah Films documentary I Have Never Forgotten You: The Life & Legacy of Simon Wiesenthal.

Tour for Humanity was on the road today in a small village outside of Windsor, Ontario. FSWC Educator Elena taught 6 workshops to students in Grades 5-8. Three of the workshops were the Canadian Experience (students learn about a variety of difficult topics in Canadian history including slavery, the Indian Residential Schools System, the voyage of the SS St. Louis, and the systemic internment of Japanese Canadians during the Second World War. Following a review of the past, current issues including cyber bullying and modern-day examples of intolerance are examined and discussed) and three were Simon's Story (a program that introduces elementary school students to the Holocaust in an age-appropriate manner. Students learn techniques to deal with injustice and ideas for creating positive change. Stereotypes, racism and prejudice are defined and discussed in an age-appropriate manner). It was a great day from the start with a very warm welcome from the principal.  Elena was very impressed with how focused the students were and the fact that they asked a lot of insightful questions.  Elena could tell that the teachers had done a lot of preparation before the Tour for Humanity visit. 

The first group of the day were Grade 7 students and one young man wanted to know what happened to Germany after Hitler committed suicide and the Nazis "ran away" as he put it.  Elena told him about the advance of the Soviet army from the east and American/British/Canadian army from the west and how Germany was divided in two in the post-war era. Elena talked about the Berlin Wall and explained Communism very briefly.  Another student wanted to know if the Nazi party still existed after the war. Elena explained that the Nazi party was destroyed at the end of the war but there were still many people alive after the war who had been Nazis and were never punished and continued to believe in the ideology. Elena talked about the fact that today in Germany, it is illegal for the Nazi party to ever reform. Even so, there are lots of groups in different countries that promote antisemitism and other forms of hatred. Elena spent the afternoon with younger students, introducing them to the subject of the Holocaust through Simon's Story. There were lots of questions and personal stories shared. One boy's mom even came by to watch the workshop because their family were Germans living in Croatia during World War II and faced a lot of discrimination under the Nazis as well. She was very enthusiastic about the program. There was also a very knowledgeable young man in the last group of the day who had lots of interesting – and accurate - facts to share about the Holocaust.

The Tom & Anna Koffler Tolerance Training Centre at FSWC was also busy with a group of high school students from Brampton who took part in a Roots of Hate and Intolerance workshop. The school routinely brings their Grade 10 English classes to our center (this is at least the 4th year that they’ve brought 3 groups per semester). The school fits their visit into the curriculum as the classes all just finished reading Elie Wiesel’s Night. 

The students were very respectful, and eager to participate and answer questions. The workshop became very personal when students began to share their own recollections with being discriminated against. One story that really stood out to FSWC Educator Daniella who was leading the presentation was a young student telling the story of being new at a school when he was in Grade 3. Evidently when he tried to make friends at recess and asked a group of kids if he could play with them, the reply he received was, “no we don’t play with servants”. Daniella, the teacher and the rest of the workshop class all looked horrified, but it also allowed Daniella to show the class that discrimination isn’t just something that happens to “someone else”.