Launched in 2013, Tour for Humanity is FSWC’s award-winning mobile human rights education centre. The 30-seat, fully accessible vehicle serves as a self-contained classroom in which FSWC’s instructors teach students about the horrors of genocide, especially the Holocaust, while addressing issues of racism, intolerance, diversity, democracy and human rights. As part of the interactive learning experience, Tour for Humanity (T4H) features a combination of video, PowerPoint presentations, activities and discussions in the four workshops offered, each adapted to the age of those in attendance.
The customized bus travels to schools and organizations throughout Canada, engaging students between grades 3 and 12, teachers and other community members from diverse personal and professional backgrounds. A creative outreach initiative, T4H teaches participants about historical and recent events, showing the connection between past and present-day hatred and its relevance on both a Canadian and global level. In the process, the content inspires participants to raise their voices and take action against racism, hate, injustice and intolerance to build a more equitable society.
Throughout the school year, the bus is typically on the road five days a week, booked primarily by schools months in advance. Since its inception, T4H has engaged more than 200,000 people, as a growing number of schools in Canada reserve it for their classes. In 2016, FSWC received the Award of Excellence from the Canadian Race Relations Foundation for the Tour for Humanity project. Such has been the increase in demand for T4H that FSWC ordered a second vehicle that took to the road in the second half of 2022.
Workshop Options
All our workshops are led by experienced FSWC facilitators. We provide teachers access to educational materials to assist in preparing their students for T4H visits. T4H incorporates multimedia to offer students a rich and interactive learning experience. To add to student interest and involvement in each workshop, the T4H mobile classroom is equipped with HD projectors, a large video wall and HD surround sound. Here are the different workshops available.
Simon's Story
Aimed at junior audiences, this workshop introduces elementary school students to the Holocaust, in part through Simon Wiesenthal’s personal story. With age-appropriate content that includes defining and discussing stereotypes, racism and prejudice, it enhances the ability of participants to become proactive members of society by creating positive change.
Suitable for Grade 3 - 6
The Canadian Experience
In this workshop, students learn about important topics in Canadian history, including the Residential School System, the MS St. Louis and the internment of Japanese Canadians during the Second World War. Following a review of the past, we examine and discuss current issues, including cyberbullying, hate crimes and a range of examples of intolerance.
Suitable for Grade 6 - 10
The Holocaust: Then and Now
Showing how the Holocaust is not just a Jewish story, but a human story, this workshop explores the attitudes and social forces in Nazi Germany and in much of Europe that helped make possible one of the darkest chapters in human history.
Suitable for Grade 6 - 12
Global Perspectives
This workshop begins with a screening of FSWC’s three-part documentary series titled The Holocaust, Universal Genocide and Real-World Heroes. The documentary is followed by a discussion of The Ten Stages of Genocide, focusing on the Holocaust and other genocides, including in Rwanda and Cambodia, and crimes against humanity in Ukraine and eastern Europe committed by the former Soviet Union under dictator Joseph Stalin.
Suitable for Grade 9 - 12
Booking the Tour
Given the high demand, the bus is often booked months in advance. To reserve a date for the Tour for Humanity mobile classroom to come to your school, please write to us at tourforhumanity@fswc.ca or call 416.864.9735 ext 222 for more details.
- Each session, 45 - 60 minutes in length, can accommodate one class of 30 people.
- Sessions are led by an experienced, specially trained FSWC educator who introduces the content and leads the discussion.
- The classroom teacher is responsible for preparing students with pre and post activities and assignments. We have developed educational materials for teachers to use before and after the program, to facilitate conversations about the topics covered.
- In terms of physical requirements, there needs to be a designated parking area of 20ft x 50ft to accommodate the bus and to allow for the safe movement of students entering and exiting the vehicle. T4H needs to park on school property without going over a large curb or through narrow alleyways.
- There is a fee to bring the T4H vehicle to schools.
For more information and to make a reservation, email us at tourforhumanity@fswc.ca or call 416.864.9735 ext 222.
Going the Distance
Tour for Humanity travels far and wide in fulfilling its mandate. Every year, we visit more than 200 schools and communities throughout Canada, engaging with thousands of young people in cities and small towns.
Since its inception in 2013, the bus has visited schools across Ontario, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Quebec, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Alberta and British Columbia.
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