Today Friends of Simon Wiesenthal Center for Holocaust Studies (FSWC) hosted a combination of Roots of Hate and Intolerance and Leadership 101 workshops for a great group of Grade 9 and 10 students from Markham in the Tom & Anna Koffler Tolerance Training Centre. The school has previously been very involved in our educational programs; November will mark the 4th Tour for Humanity visit to the school since 2014.

The class today was a special group, many of whom are part of the school’s “Me to We” program and had to apply to be a part of today's program at FSWC. This led to some very insightful discussions on some very important topics. Students were quick to debate current hate crime statistics, especially given that most hate crimes are unreported. The school recently dealt with antisemitic graffiti found on school property, which shook up the student population. Today’s group pledged to fight antisemitism and racism at their school.

FSWC Educator Daniella, who led the program, was particularly touched by one student sharing a goal for the future of wanting “to leave a positive legacy” in the world. By the end of the workshop the group had come up with long lists of ways to be proactive on both a small and large scale.

FSWC Director of Education, Melissa, was also on the road presenting FSWC programming. She spoke at the Combatting Systemic Racism & Breaking Down Barriers conference organized by the English, French and Catholic school board associations of Ontario.  Attendees were principals and vice principals from all school boards across Ontario.  The conference was organized in response to the Ontario government’s anti-racism directorate as a means of starting the conversation with school leaders and giving them tools to take back to their school communities to address different forms of hatred and intolerance. 

FSWC was invited to participate in a break-out session to discuss antisemitism.  There were approximately 30 principals/vice principals who selected this workshop.  Melissa started the program with the story of Simon Wiesenthal and jumped right into antisemitism today, before moving into a brief history on antisemitism to provide context. Melissa also touched on new antisemitism with the spread of the BDS movement against Israel and the concern on university campuses today along with the flood of antisemitic hatred that we’ve been seeing on school grounds over the past 6 months.  She led the group through an exercise in utilizing propaganda as a connection to their media literacy strand for students in their school – a tangible tool they can take back to introduce to their teachers.  Finally, she spoke about FSWC programs and ways in which we can support their teacher and student communities.   

The attendees appeared to be engaged throughout the presentation, physically reacting to the material, offering thoughts and ideas throughout the presentation and taking notes.  There were audible gasps at several points in the presentation along with head shakes of disgust – particularly at points discussing the blood libel, the publication of the Protocols of the Elders of Zion and again when we discussed the role of teachers/schools in indoctrinating German youth with antisemitic rhetoric during the Nazi regime.  There were a number of educators who approached Melissa following the presentation to ask specific questions and to collect FSWC brochures to take back to their schools.  One principal was in touch Monday evening to ask about incorporating FSWC support into an upcoming program they are planning.  She began her message by stating, “Thank you for a very informative and important workshop today.”