CIJA Applauds Saskatchewan’s Introduction Of Mandatory Holocaust Education Beginning In 2025-26

Ottawa, ON – November 20, 2023 – Today, the Government of Saskatchewan announced that Holocaust education will be a compulsory component of the renewed Social Studies 10 curriculum expected to be introduced to high school students for the 2025-26 school year.

Saskatchewan is the fourth Canadian province to adopt mandatory Holocaust education in schools, joining Ontario, B.C., and Alberta.

In response, Shimon Koffler Fogel, President and CEO, Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs said:

“Combating hate begins with education. The safety of the Jewish community is supported by the understanding of what Never Again truly means. This is a significant step by the government of Saskatchewan to ensure children in the province grow up knowing what the Holocaust was, how it affected Jews across the world, and how important it is never to forget the lesson that hate can corrupt society, which the world learned from this tragic chapter of our history.

“At a time when the Jewish community is encountering what, for many, is the worst antisemitism of their life, we applaud the understanding of this lived experience and the support shown today by the Government of Saskatchewan. Educating people about how antisemitism manifests itself, its various impacts, and the tools needed to combat it are essential for stopping its spread. Holocaust education is a large part of that.

“We know that much hate is born from ignorance, so we are encouraged that four provinces have recognized Holocaust education as a vital tool in stamping out hate. We hope that the governments of the remaining provinces will follow the leadership shown by Saskatchewan and others and add mandatory Holocaust education to their respective school curricula.”

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Additional Background

• Statistics Canada: Police-reported crime statistics in Canada, 2022
  • Press Release: In 2022, Jews remain most targeted religious group for hate crime in Canada, second overall
  • Jews in Canada represent only one percent of the population yet are victims of 67 percent of all religiously motivated hate incidents and 14 percent of overall reported hate crimes.
  • The Jewish community was targeted in 502 reported hate crime incidents – that’s more than one incident of Jew-hatred per day in 2022.
  • The Jewish community was the most targeted religious minority, accounting for 67 percent of religiously motivated hate.
  • While religiously motivated hate crimes overall were down 15 percent year over year, hate crime targeting the Jewish community increased 2 percent between 2021 and 2022.
  • Anti-Jewish hate crime has increased 52 percent since 2020.
• Press Release: Top Jewish Advocacy Organizations Form J7 Global Task Force to Fight Antisemitism
• Press Release: 2021 - Jews Remain Most Targeted Religious Group for Hate Crime in Canada
• Press Release: 2020 Hate Crime Data Reveals Jews Most Targeted Religious Group
• Not all hate crimes or incidents of antisemitism are reported or recorded. Not all incidents meet the threshold of a crime, especially in schools, so national hate crime statistics do not accurately reflect the total number of antisemitic incidents.