President Meric Gertler
University of Toronto
27 King’s College Circle, Room 206
Toronto ON Canada
M5S 1A1

November 19, 2019

Dear President Gertler,

I write to you today to express my grave concern over the recent actions and words of the University of Toronto Graduate Students’ Union (UTGSU).

Last week, an executive member of the UTGSU stated the organization would be unlikely to support a motion to bring kosher food to campus on the basis that Hillel, which supports the effort, is “pro-Israel”. Conflating students’ concerns with having accessible kosher options on campus in any way with Israel or any group’s position on Israel is outrageous, unacceptable and blatantly antisemitic. The generic apology issued later by the GSU did little to address the explicit antisemitism inherent in their statement, nor does it diminish the concerns of our community that there is a systemic antisemitism problem at the union that germinates daily through its BDS campaign.

I know that you are committed to combating antisemitism and other forms of discrimination at the university. As such, I ask you to take a determined approach to addressing the bigotry of the GSU – to issue a clear and unequivocal statement denouncing the actions of the union and launch a thorough investigation of antisemitism within its offices. I ask that you work with stakeholders to ensure Jewish students have access to kosher food on campus.And finally, I ask that you spearhead the effort to have the university adopt the definition of antisemitism outlined by the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance.

Thank you for your attention to this matter, and I look forward to hearing from you.

Sincerely,

‍

‍

Avi Benlolo
President and CEO
Friends of Simon Wiesenthal Center for Holocaust Studies