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Toronto (March 8, 2022) – Friends of Simon Wiesenthal Center (FSWC) stands in solidarity with the more than 300 Jewish University of Toronto faculty members who have signed an open letter to the Temerty Faculty of Medicine denouncing an outrageous antisemitic diatribe by 45 other faculty members against Irwin Cotler, Canada’s Special Envoy on Preserving Holocaust Remembrance and Combatting Antisemitism.

An open letter to the acting dean of the Faculty of Medicine from Doctors Against Racism and Anti-Semitism, signed by 316 Jewish professors, outlines the “falsehoods, twisted logic and antisemitic rhetoric” contained in a faculty letter which attacks a recent event on contemporary antisemitism that was hosted by the Faculty of Medicine and sponsored by FSWC and featured Special Envoy Cotler. The original letter bizarrely claims that the event “reinforced anti-Palestinian racism” and was “focused centrally on lobbying for the IHRA working definition of antisemitism and repeatedly labeled legitimate criticism of Israel as examples of antisemitism” and makes libelous accusations against FSWC.

The International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) working definition of antisemitism has been endorsed by the Government of Ontario and Government of Canada, which has repeatedly reaffirmed its support for the definition. Part of Cotler’s mandate as Special Envoy is to lead Canada’s delegation to the IHRA and work to advance the implementation of its definition of antisemitism.

In May 2021, FSWC called on U of T President Meric Gertler to take urgent action and launch an investigation after Jewish students in the Faculty of Medicine reported they were subjected to antisemitic harassment and intimidation. The students felt antisemitism and extreme anti-Israel rhetoric that faculty and fellow students engaged in had created a toxic environment.

In the aftermath of the concerns raised by Jewish students, the Faculty of Medicine decided to host the event featuring Irwin Cotler.

“It is extremely bizarre and disturbing that some U of T faculty members have chosen to wrongfully attack a distinguished leader in the Jewish community who has dedicated his life to combatting antisemitism and other forms of hatred and standing up for human rights in Canada and around the world,” said Michael Levitt, FSWC President and CEO. “Time and time again, it appears Jews are being told what is and isn’t antisemitism and what actions can and cannot be taken to combat this pervasive hatred. Clearly, the IHRA definition of antisemitism needs to be endorsed by U of T now more than ever, as Jew-hatred continues to fester on campus. We commend the hundreds of U of T faculty members who have chosen to raise their voices in the face of such ugliness.”