Jewish group applauds mandatory Holocaust education in Manitoba

The head of the Jewish Heritage Centre of Western Canada applauds a move by Manitoba to make Holocaust education mandatory.

"Holocaust education is a key tool for countering prejudice and cultivating inclusion. It's not just about this tragedy that happened, of course, to the Jewish people, but its implications for broader society," said Belle Jarniewski, executive director of the Winnipeg-based organization.

"When students learn about the Holocaust, they engage with very complicated moral questions — some that do not come with simple answers — and critical thinking is also a big part of this."

People have been lobbying provincial governments for nearly 50 years to have a specific curriculum developed for teachers around the Holocaust, Jarniewski said.

But they have only recently begun to see movement.

British Columbia and Ontario recently announced Holocaust education will be mandatory for Grade 10 students starting in fall 2025, while Alberta and Saskatchewan announced this month that studying the Holocaust will be a compulsory part of new social studies curriculums.

Jarniewski met with Education Minister Nello Altomare and deputy minister Brian O'Leary 10 days ago to explain why teaching about the Holocaust is so important.

And in Tuesday's throne speech — which outlines the government's priorities for the coming legislative session — Manitoba Premier Wab Kinew committed to making Holocaust education mandatory in the kindergarten to Grade 12 system.

"I'm pleased that Manitoba has followed the lead of other provinces," Jarniewski said. "Unfortunately, many students know little about the Holocaust, and by mandating the education, we can also provide broader professional development programs for teachers."

A 2019 survey suggested that one in five Canadian youths at the time were unaware of what happened during the Holocaust.

There are no details yet on how the curriculum will be implemented or at which grade levels. Jarniewski recommends it be part of the Grade 11 Canadian history curriculum.

The Israel-Hamas war in the Middle East has underscored the importance of having that kind of conversation and education, she said.

"There has been such an upsurge in antisemitism and anti-Jewish hate that has come to our doorstep. We are seeing students targeted, we are seeing fear in the Jewish community, we are seeing threats, we're seeing even some violence," Jarniewski said.

"It is through education that we can combat hate, and education about the Holocaust is something that combats not only anti-Jewish hate, but helps students learn about how words can turn into violence, how it can teach about early warnings for genocide and much more."

Kinew, in the throne speech, also announced plans to give educators anti-Islamophobia tool kits prepared by Manitoba's Islamic community.

The kits, which will launch Dec. 6, will provide resources and lesson plans and links to places teachers can reach out for additional help, said Tasneem Vali, a volunteer with the Manitoba Islamic Association.

"All the foreign events that happen affect us at home … because we are such a diverse nation. Everybody has somebody who is being affected by something that is going on around the world," she said.

The resources range from reading lists and videos on cultural and current affairs to guidance on finding ethnic restaurants and halal stores in case a school is having a barbecue and needs to find kosher or halal meat, Vali said.

"[There are also] Ramadan and Eid resources, because we feel a lot of children struggle with educators not knowing about Ramadan, where children are fasting, so they might not be alert during exam times, just things like that," she said.

"This is a very important toolkit to educate educators, so that when they are addressing children in their classroom or in a different setting, to know where they're coming from, to understand that there might be a background to something the child is saying and to understand context."