Toronto (November 23, 2017) - Friends of SimonWiesenthal Center for Holocaust Studies (FSWC) is concerned to learn that theUniversity of Regina is the latest Canadian campus to be plastered with"It's Okay To Be White" posters. Similar posters - coordinated through online social forums as part of a strategy to evoke racial tension and conflict in the media and in the community - have beenfound on campuses in Alberta, Saskatchewan and Ontario since Halloween .

"University of Regina administrators are to be commended for moving quickly to remove the posters. The offensive nature of themessaging should be given no room to spread on Canadiancampuses where the commitment to inclusion within the diversestudent body must be a nurtured priority," said Avi Benlolo, President and CEO ofFSWC. "The poisonous nature of the message is illustrated by the fact that the posters were found affixed to the university's Office of Indigenization, a centre dedicated to the well-being of the large Indigenous student body. By removing the posters, the university has made it clear thatmessages attempting to prioritize one group at the expense of others falls well outside the commitment tofree speech."

Having just returned from delivering equity trainingto a large audience of principals and educators in Regina, FSWC is confidentthat educators are committed to countering attempts to recruit young people toadopt such divisive views. FSWC urges campus administrators and student bodies across Canada to speak out in condemnation against those who wish to poison the climate on campus and to work with enforcement personnel and police to identify those responsible.

Through its advocacy initiatives and educational programs – such as Tour forHumanity, Freedom Day and the National Policy Conference on Holocaust Education– FSWC speaks out against all forms of hate and antisemitism and is committedto promoting tolerance and acceptance in communities throughout Canada.

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Media Contact: 

Avital Borisovsky  
Communications Associate      
416.864.9735 x 29  
aborisovsky@fswc.ca

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Follow us on Twitter at @CanadianFSWC for latest news and organization updates.

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Friends of Simon Wiesenthal Center for Holocaust Studies (FSWC) is a top Jewish human rights foundation in Canada's organized Jewish community. It directly impacts over 100,000 people each year and 500,000+ peripherally. FSWC is committed to countering racism and antisemitism and to promoting the principles of tolerance, social justice and Canadian democratic values through advocacy and educational programs including workshops, Freedom Day, Spirit of Hope Benefit, Tools for Tolerance and the widely acclaimed Tour for Humanity. FSWC is affiliated with the Simon Wiesenthal Center, an international Jewish human rights organization headquartered in Los Angeles which has won two Academy Awards, has built two Museums of Tolerance (with a third being built in Jerusalem) and is an NGO at the United Nations, UNESCO, OAS, OSCE, the Council of Europe and the Latin American Parliament. Visit us at www.fswc.ca. 

 Canadian Headquarters: Toronto       Branches: Los Angeles • New York • Chicago • Paris • Buenos Aires • Israel

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