Friends of Simon Wiesenthal Center for Holocaust Studies Welcomes Toronto District School Board Decision re East End Madrassah


TORONTO, ONTARIO--(Marketwire - May 16, 2012) - Friends of Simon Wiesenthal Center for Holocaust Studies (FSWC) supports the decision of the Toronto District School Board (TDSB) to pull the license of the East End Madrassah pending the results of an investigation by the York Region Police hate crimes unit.

"We are pleased to note the TDSB has taken action in response to the alarming antisemitic hate taught to Muslim school children at Toronto's East End Madrassah," said Avi Benlolo, President and CEO of FSWC. "We hope the school board will now go one step further and put a plan in place to ensure no group is ever targeted as the Jewish community has been, and that ancient hatreds are never again endorsed and encouraged in Toronto classrooms," he added.

FSWC remains concerned that this type of anti-Jewish hate may be taught in other Islamic facilities in Ontario and welcomes any initiatives, such as a Task Force, by school boards to investigate and address all forms of racism and intolerance in our education system.

Contact Information:

Friends of Simon Wiesenthal Center for Holocaust Studies
Stacey Starkman
Communications Manager
416.864.9735 x 32
sstarkman@fswc.ca