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November 26, 2004
A better place to learn
Jewish group helps Vancouver schools fight hate.
PAT JOHNSON
Canadian Jewish Congress has offered its expertise to the Vancouver
school board in fighting hate and discrimination.
The school board is undertaking a review of diversity policies and
anti-racism programs, partly as a result of the killing of Mao Jomar
Lanot, a Tupper secondary school student who was murdered in what
was believed to be a race-motivated crime.
Lanot, a 17-year-old Filipino student, was beaten to death on a
school playing field by a group of Indo-Canadian youth in November
2003. Members of the Asian community called for action by the school
board and the city to deal with racism in the community.
Congress submitted a brief to the board last month accompanied by
some materials it has compiled in its ongoing work raising public
awareness of discrimination issues and pointing out areas where
the CJC might be of assistance.
The CJC officials who spearheaded the brief to the school board,
Mark Wexler and Chris Friedrichs, say the review of educational
approaches to hatred is timely.
"The Jewish community is very concerned that Vancouver schools,
like all schools, should be a safe and protected environment for
all students, not just Jewish students," said Friedrichs, a
University of British Columbia history professor. "The Jewish
community of Vancouver has developed very specific resources for
dealing with racist episodes and hate incidents." He noted
that the resources and assistance being offered to the school board
are not all CJC's. Other groups, including the Vancouver Holocaust
Education Centre, have prepared some of the materials and are prepared
to assist the school board in its work.
Wexler, a professor in the business faculty at Simon Fraser University,
cautioned that, by world standards, British Columbia and Canada
remain fairly comfortable environments for minority communities,
though he sees some potential for improvement in public discourse,
civility and cohesion.
"We rank fairly well in world terms. We're a fairly tolerant
nation," he said. "Are we moving in the right direction?
Perhaps not."
Jane Bouey, the Vancouver school trustee who is chair of the committee
responsible for the review, said CJC's offer of assistance is welcomed.
"We really want to try to utilize the incredible wealth of
experience," she said, noting that CJC is one of several groups
who have contributed to the process so far.
Bouey said the review of diversity issues was near the top of the
agenda for the school board, which two years ago saw a massive realignment
in the Coalition of Progressive Electors municipal election landslide.
Trustees were planning to review policies and procedures on these
issues, but the murder "pushed it to the absolute front burner."
Since that tragedy, Bouey said she's heard, word has spread among
gang recruiters and drug dealers to stay clear of Tupper, because
the students there have gone soft – that is, they're not open
to participating in such activities.
"I can't think of a better thing to hear about our schools
than that the kids are too soft," Bouey said.
The CJC brief offers to assist the board with specific areas, including
encouraging a cross-curricular approach to anti-racism and multiculturalism;
creating response strategies for hate incidents; training administrators
and teachers to deal effectively with multiculturalism and to overcome
hate; and increasing the inclusiveness of curricula.
"We believe that the most helpful area in which Canadian Jewish
Congress can be involved in partnerships with the Vancouver school
board is in the arena of professional development," the brief
states. "We know that many teachers still find it difficult
to recognize and respond to manifestations of hate and harassment.
They can use additional help in developing awareness around these
issues and learning strategies for dealing with them."
Recent federal statistics indicate the Jewish community is the community
most frequently affected by hate and bias crimes.
Pat Johnson is a B.C. journalist and commentator.
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