Côte Saint-Luc City Council has unanimously adopted a resolution calling on the Quebec government to make Holocaust education mandatory in public schools.
Here is the resolution
Whereas in its 2022 audit of antisemitic incidents, B’nai Brith, Canada’s oldest Jewish advocacy organization, nationally active since 1875, noted there were 2769 such incidents across Canada during the year of which 242 were in British Columbia;
Whereas Statistics Canada in its 2022 document released July 27, 2023 on police reported crime in Canada, indicated in Table 6 that there were 750 police-reported hate crimes targeting religious minorities during 2022, of which 502 or 66.9% were aimed at Jews;
Whereas Ontario recently became the first province to introduce mandatory Holocaust education into the elementary school curriculum;
Whereas in tasking the Ontario College of Teachers to create an age appropriate curriculum to teach the Holocaust starting in Grade 6, Education Minister Stephen Lecce indicated that according to the first study of antisemitism and Holocaust knowledge
conducted by Western University and Liberation75 in 2021, 42 per cent of students surveyed said they have unequivocally witnessed an antisemitic event;
Whereas this same study also found that one in three students in Ontario thought the Holocaust was fabricated, exaggerated or are unsure if it actually happened;
Whereas studies in the United States suggest that jurisdictions which make Holocaust education compulsory not only witness a reduction in antisemitic incidents but also see a decline in hate aimed at Blacks and Asians;
Whereas a study issued in September 2023 by Reality Check indicates that where Holocaust studies begin earlier in school and are mandatory that Americans with greater Holocaust knowledge displayed heightened warmth toward religious and racial minorities compared to others;
Whereas as survivors age and pass away, it is more important than ever that our schools play a key role in preserving Holocaust remembrance thereby protecting children from widespread Holocaust denial and distortion often disseminated online;
Whereas Jewish organizations are urging all the provinces and territories to emulate Ontario’s example and introduce mandatory Holocaust education in elementary school;
It was by myself, seconded by Councillor Andee Shuster
AND RESOLVED:
“THAT the Côte Saint-Luc City Council recognize the dangers of Holocaust denial and distortion which so often targets our young people;
THAT the Côte Saint-Luc City Council urges the Ministry of Education to introduce mandatory Holocaust education to Quebec’s elementary schools as of the 2024-2025 academic year;
THAT the Côte Saint-Luc City Council invites the Ministry of Education to consult Ontario’s curriculum and mandate the Conseil supérieur de l’éducation and other stakeholders as to how to best introduce this new curriculum and how to provide training
for teachers.”
