Today the Tour for Humanity was back in action at Camp Ramah, an international Jewish overnight camp in the Muskoka area. Friends of Simon Wiesenthal Center for Holocaust Studies (FSWC) has visited this camp in the past and the staff remembered the program very fondly. A few of the campers also remembered being on Tour for Humanity - for some campers that was 3 years ago - which FSWC Educator Elena thought was a very good sign of the impact of the program. 

Elena taught 5 workshops on the Canadian Experience to campers in the 12-14 age range. She talked at length about World War II and the Holocaust, several students sharing with her the fact that they lost family members during the Holocaust. Elena encouraged each student who shared their family history to keep talking about it; keeping the memory of victims of the Holocaust alive starts with their families. There were also some very thoughtful questions throughout the day. Several students wanted to know more about the history of antisemitism in Europe and the propaganda used by the Nazi party leading into the Holocaust. One student also asked about Austria specifically, wanting to know why the Allies didn't declare war on Germany when they invaded Austria (and Czechoslovakia) so Elena described the broader political atmosphere and responses to Nazis in Britain, France, etc. during the 1930s.

There was also a great discussion between a couple of American campers on the subject of indigenous rights. One camper thought that America gave more rights to Aboriginal people, to which another camper brought up the Trail of Tears (forced relocation of Native groups to present-day Oklahoma) and brought up the contemporary example of the conflict over the construction of the Keystone Pipeline. Although this conversation was above many of the other campers' heads, it was encouraging to see 12-13 year olds really engaging with these subjects. 

Many of the campers were fasting today in commemoration of Tish'a  B'Av, the Jewish holiday that remembers the destruction of the 1st and 2nd Temples in Israel which were destroyed on the same day 655 years apart. 

 It was a great day and some of the Camp administrators are already talking about next year's visit. If you're interested in learning more about Tour for Humanity, visit the website www.tourforhumanity.com or contact Melissa at mmikel@fswc.ca.