Twelve Jewish teachers file human rights complaints over antisemitism in Ontario schools
The teachers allege their school boards and unions failed to act on incidents including swastikas drawn in classrooms.
TORONTO · Twelve Jewish teachers have filed discrimination complaints with the Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario against four school boards and three teachers' unions. The applicants allege they faced antisemitism at work and that the institutions responsible for their workplaces failed to act, sometimes penalizing them for reporting incidents. Their lawyer, Kathryn Marshall, said the complaints aim to force institutional change. "All of these teachers all went to their unions for support and the boards for support and help and they were ignored, which is why they're having to sue," Marshall said. The named respondents are the Toronto, York Region, Simcoe County and Ottawa-Carleton district school boards, along with the Elementary Teachers’ Federation of Ontario, the Ontario Secondary School Teachers’ Federation and the Ottawa-Carleton Elementary Teachers' Federation.
Each teacher is seeking $150,000 in general damages for discrimination and compensation for psychological counselling. They also request that the tribunal order the boards and unions to create transparent, enforceable policies to combat antisemitism within six months, developed with input from the Jewish community. Although filed individually, the group will ask the tribunal to hear the twelve applications together. Marshall emphasized the complaints are not about criticism of Israel. "That is absolutely not what this case is about whatsoever. This case is about teachers who are scared to go to work because they are being subjected to hate because they're Jewish," she said.
The allegations include specific incidents where teachers say their concerns were dismissed. One claim states a swastika was drawn on a classroom desk but the Toronto District School Board did not investigate the teacher's complaint. Another teacher reported seeing students play a game about Hitler in the schoolyard, while a different educator said a student played the Nazi anthem in class without consequence. A teacher also alleged the Star of David was repeatedly removed from a school's anti-hate bulletin board with no action taken. "The common thing that a lot of these teachers have experienced is they've gone to their school boards to make complaints and there haven't been sanctions, there haven't been investigations, there hasn't been action," Marshall said.
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Union conduct is also cited in the complaints. One teacher said she was publicly reprimanded by a union vice president after trying to raise concerns about antisemitism at a meeting. Another applicant claimed that after raising concerns about the politicization of a union event, he was accused of "anti-Palestinian racism." Marshall said the unions have a duty of fair representation. "They're choosing not to advance the teachers' complaints to the schools," she said. The group also wants the tribunal to mandate that the respondents adopt the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance definition of antisemitism.
School board spokespeople responded by saying they do not comment on active legal proceedings but asserted their commitment to addressing hate. Ryan Bird, speaking for the Toronto District School Board, said all allegations of antisemitism are thoroughly investigated. "Antisemitism has no place in our communities or schools," Bird said. Representatives for the York Region, Simcoe County and Ottawa-Carleton boards similarly declined to comment on the specific complaints, citing the tribunal process, but each affirmed a commitment to safe and inclusive environments.
The teachers' unions named in the applications also declined to discuss the case. Carla Pereira, a spokesperson for the Elementary Teachers’ Federation of Ontario, said the union does not comment on legal matters before the tribunal. Brian LeSage, president of the Ottawa-Carleton Elementary Teachers' Federation, said the union serves a diverse membership regardless of background. The Ontario Secondary School Teachers’ Federation did not respond to a request for comment. Marshall said she will seek an expedited tribunal hearing because most of the applicants are still teaching and facing ongoing discrimination.
With files from CBC News, National Post and The Globe and Mail