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What’s New for November 2013
November 3rd to 9th is Holocaust Education Week
“Without memory, there is no culture. Without memory, there would be no civilization, no society, no future.”
– Elie Wiesel
Holocaust Education Week (HEW) is the signature program for the Sarah and Chaim Neuberger Holocaust Education Centre. Marking one of the most significant human atrocities in our history, HEW is an opportunity for us to remember these actions and the impacts they continue to exert. HEW 2013 challenges personal and social reflection through the use of narratives from survivors, communities and the next generations. There are a series of events taking place here at the University of Toronto in association with HEW 2013 to observe and spark inquiry while generating knowledge applicable to our current social contexts. See a list of some HEW 2013 events happening on U of T campuses below.
Unfiltered: Truth Talks
The Anti-Racism & Cultural Diversity Office launches its new drop-in program “Unfiltered: Truth Talks”- a safe space for students to engage conversations around race, racism, ethnicity, culture, creed and the intersections among them, inside and outside of the classroom. The program is peer facilitated and is an opportunity for students to support each other and find community amongst those with similar lived experiences. This is the first in a series of sessions to be held for students and although we are starting on the University of Toronto – St. George Campus, there are intentions to expand tri-campus.
Please share with your student networks! Light snacks and refreshments will be provided.
Holocaust Education Week Events at U of T
Nov 3rd, 10:30am – 2:30pm, Hart House (UTSG): Legacy Symposium. How do next generations understand and internalize the narratives of the Holocaust in the context of 21st century world issues? This symposium will invite participants to examine narratives (local, national, past, present) and evaluate themselves as individuals and as a collective in the effort to preserve and personalize history. Keynote presentation from Yishai Goldflam, Holocaust educator, guide, and filmmaker. A symposium for people in their 20s and 30s.
Nov 3rd, 4:00pm, George Ignatieff Theatre (UTSG):Witold Pilecki: The Auschwitz Volunteer. In 1940, as part of a Polish resistance operation, Captain Witold Pilecki volunteered to go behind the gates of Auschwitz. The result is an incredible tale of bravery and espionage. Imprisoned until his escape in 1943, Pilecki risked his life to give the Polish Underground and the Allies a direct testimony of what was going on behind the barbed wires of Auschwitz. University of Toronto Professors Piotr Wróbel and Tamara Trojanowska will examine Pilecki’s firsthand account, The Auschwitz Volunteer, and frame the newly released English-language book and related film in the context of literary representation of history.
Nov 5th, 7:30pm, William Doo Auditorium (UTSG): Branded by the Pink Triangle. Award-winning author and storyteller, Ken Setterington, will present a program based on his recently published book, Branded by the Pink Triangle, which explores the rarely told story of the Nazi persecution of homosexuals. The evening will bring to light the experience of gay men in 1930s Germany and throughout the dark years of the Holocaust.
Nov 6th, 12:00pm to 2:00pm, Hillel at U of T – The Wolfond Centre (UTSG): Holocaust Education Week Speaker – Elogé Butera. Elogé is a Rwandan survivor, lawyer, human rights activist, former Sauve Scholar and Holocaust Education activist, currently employed in the office of Ret. Gen. Sen. Dallaire. Eloge will be talking to students during the lunch hour about why Holocaust Education has inspired him to speak up about his extremely compelling story and to become an advocate and informal educator in his own right. Presented by Hillel at U of T in collaboration with the Multi-Faith Centre for Spiritual Study and Practice and the Anti-Racism & Cultural Diversity Office.
More Events
Nov 4th – 7th, UTSG: Linked Oppressions. An annual tradition of the Equity Studies Students’ Union, “Linked Oppressions” is a week-long event series that examines how various forms of marginalization, with a special focus on racism, homophobia and transphobia, are articulated, experiences and resisted.
Nov 5th, 5:30pm – 6:30pm, Multi-faith Centre (UTSG): Quebec Charter of Values: What’s it all about? Join Prof. Benjamin Berger, Osgoode Law School and Prof. Simone Chambers, Political Science, U of T in a moderated discussion of the Quebec Charter of Values with Prof. Pamela Klassen, Director, Religion in the Public Sphere programme, U of T. Explore issues of state neutrality and religious accommodation vis-à-vis the proposed legislation of the Quebec’s Charter of Values. The proposed Charter includes banning public sector workers, including teachers and all civil servants from wearing “ostentatious” religious symbols. This includes: hijabs, turbans, and large crosses.
Nov 6th, 10:00am – 4:00pm, UTM: Study Abroad Fair. Attend the Study Abroad Fair to learn about international opportunities available to UofT students. Speak with representatives from our partner institutions, meet current exchange students and UTM students who have studied abroad.
Nov 7th, 3:00pm – 4:30pm, Centre for Women & Trans People (UTSG): Q21 – Healing & Hope. The Equity Studies Students’ Union has partnered with the Sexual and Gender Diversity Office to present Healing and Hope: A Q21 Conversation Café. Led by two peer facilitators, this Conversation Café will attempt to provide students with a safe space to discuss issues that are particularly important to them. Through open dialogue, we intend to highlight the lived realities of students, the ways in which they cope with challenges and how we can heal for a brighter future.
Nov 7th, 3:00pm – 4:00pm, IC-208 (UTSC): Inter-cultural Communication Training. Do you want to understand the components and process of developing Intercultural competence, and the importance of different worldviews?
Nov 11th – 15th, UTSG: Peace Week/Table Fair. Peace Week is an extraordinary week of panels, reflections and presentations with the prospects of creating a sustainable culture of peace. It is to remember those who laid down their lives for peace. It is for the terrorized and the aggrieved. It is for the oppressor who knows not what they do and the oppressed who understand too well what is being done to them. It is a time for truth, for healing, sharing, aspiring toward a world of greater peace. Peace Week is for everyone. Sponsored By: Social Justice Committee Hart House, Campus Chaplain Association, Multi-Faith Center, UofT Student Union, Centre for Community Partnerships.
Nov 13th, 11:00am – 4:00pm, UTM: UTM Living Library. The University of Toronto Mississauga, in collaboration with Hart House presents the Living Library Project. The Living Library Project is an event designed to create dialogue, promote understanding and reduce prejudice. A collection of “human books” (widely varied in gender, cultural and religious backgrounds, and age) will be offered on “loan” to visitors (“readers”). Facilitated by Living Library Librarians, visitors “borrow” the human book for up to 25 minutes and engage in free flowing conversation. The informal “Reader-Book” interaction is a positive and safe way to question and explore pre-conceived notions around race, class, gender, religion, sexuality, and to share personal narratives through open dialogue. Through this program, we hope to promote tolerance, and deepen the understanding of social justice, equity and diversity.
Nov 17th, 2:00pm – 5:00pm, Multi-Faith Centre (UTSG): Standing Up for the ‘Other’: Muslim and Jewish Women Re-read Sarah and Hagar. Please join Shari Golberg, PhD and the Canadian Association of Jews and Muslims for a stimulating afternoon of interfaith dialogue and textual study as we explore the role of these two mothers in both Jewish and Muslim traditions. Muslim and Jewish women of all ages and religious backgrounds are welcome – no previous experience with religious text is necessary.
Nov 20th, 6:00pm – 9:00pm, Hart House (UTSG): Anti-Racism: A Critical Discussion. Join the Hart House Social Justice Committee and Literary & Library Committee for the book launch of the new critical reader, Contemporary Issues in the Sociology of Race and Ethnicity, edited by George J. Sefa Dei and Meredith Lordan. From the Travyon Martin case to Africentric schooling, this work brings theory to the front lines of racial identity, engagement, and challenge. Academia meets the real – and racialized – world. There will be an interactive discussion to celebrate the Canadian launch of this new collection with a light reception to follow.
Nov 26th, 11:00am – 3:00pm, Hart House (UTSG): Living Library. Do you have any idea what it’s like to live in a refugee camp in the Ivory Coast, quit a stable job to follow your dreams, or compete for a spot in medical school? Now you can find out straight from someone that’s been there, done that and lived to tell you the story. Hear a story and share an experience with one of our inspiring “living books”. Borrow a human book for 30 minutes of open dialogue. Presented by Hart House with support from the Anti-Racism & Cultural Diversity Office, the Multi-faith Centre for Spiritual Study and Practice, and the Sexual and Gender Diversity Office.
Nov 28th – 30th, Victoria College (UTSG): “1993-2013:20 Years of Philadelphia”. Where are we twenty years after HIV/AIDS appeared on the silver screen in the 1993 movie ‘Philadelphia’? What challenges do PHAs (people with HIV/AIDS) face today with the availability of life-prolonging drugs? Where are we now and where are we headed, as PHAs, caregivers, academics, activists, and healthcare workers? 20 Years of Philadelphia is an inquiry into HIV/AIDS in contemporary Canada, in two parts: Part I – ‘The Philadephia Project,’ a new play written by Jessica Ng and directed by Tom Osborne. Part II: Still Here: A Symposium on Living and Aging with HIV/AIDS in Canada.
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