Twelve Ontario Jewish teachers are pursuing human rights complaints against their school boards and unions, alleging they have been subjected to discrimination and anti-Semitism that has been left unchecked.
During a news conference in Toronto on Oct. 1, lawyer Kathryn Marshall said the teachers are asking the Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario to order their employers and unions to address alleged anti-Semitism and improve protections for Jewish educators.
She said teachers pursued internal complaints before turning to the tribunal, but those efforts failed to resolve their concerns.
Marshall described incidents involving swastikas, Hitler-related songs and schoolyard games, and the removal of Jewish symbols from school displays. She alleged that some teachers faced discipline or other consequences after reporting incidents.
Marshall’s law firm cited Statistics Canada data suggesting that 70 percent of police-reported hate crimes targeting a religion in 2024 were aimed at Jewish people. She said that while Jews comprise 4 percent of Toronto’s population, 40 percent of all hate crimes were targeted at Jews.
The applicants are seeking $150,000 in general damages each for discrimination, along with compensation for psychological counselling.
They also want the Tribunal to order the respondents to develop policies to “combat individual and systemic antisemitic discrimination.”
Toronto District School Board, one of the school boards named in the lawsuit, said it can’t comment on active legal proceedings involving individual employees.
“What we can say is that all allegations of antisemitism and other forms of hate brought to the Board’s attention are thoroughly investigated and addressed,” a spokesperson told The Epoch Times. “Antisemitism has no place in our communities or schools. The Board has and will continue to work with community groups and agencies to combat antisemitism and to foster inclusive schools and workplaces where students and staff feel safe and welcome.”
A spokesperson with the York Region District School Board also said that the organization would not comment on the matters before a tribunal. “YRDSB is committed to creating and sustaining safe, welcoming and inclusive learning and working spaces for all students and staff,” the spokesperson added.
The Elementary Teachers’ Federation of Ontario, one of the unions named in the lawsuit, similarly told The Epoch Times that it doesn’t comment on legal matters before a tribunal.
The Ontario Secondary School Teachers’ Federation, which is also named in the legal proceeding, didn’t respond to a request for comment.
Teachers’ Concerns
Marshall said one teacher reported repeated defacement of Israeli flags in library books and hallway maps, while another witnessed a student singing a Hitler-related anthem. She said teachers also witnessed students playing games involving Hitler.
Other allegations concerned the repeated removal of a Star of David from an anti-hate bulletin board. Marshall said teachers responsible for Jewish Heritage Month displays were told to remove Israeli flags, while one teacher was publicly reprimanded at a union meeting after attempting to discuss anti-Semitism at work.
Tamara Steinberg, a Jewish community advocate who helped connect the teachers with Marshall, said educators had spent years raising concerns through meetings, emails, delegations, and participation in union proceedings.
“Jewish teachers are tired—tired of defending their identity, tired of being questioned about their political beliefs, tired of being held responsible for the actions of foreign governments,” she said.
Steinberg said that some Jewish educators experienced online attacks, exclusion, and the disclosure of personal information. She also said alleged faced investigations, unexplained administrative leave or assignments outside their expertise, while others transferred schools, took mental health leave, or retired early.
Steinberg also said that educators encountered resistance when discussing Zionism during presentations on Jewish identity or distributing Holocaust memoirs. She said the concerns predated the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas attacks on Israel.
‘Protect Teachers’
Marshall said the complaints focus on the conduct of school boards and unions rather than individual students. Students are not named in the proceedings, she said.
The requested remedies include procedures for responding when teachers report harassment or discrimination by students. Marshall said those procedures should provide for disciplinary consequences, potentially including suspension or expulsion.
“We are asking the Human Rights Tribunal to do something, to call this what it is, which is discrimination and hate, and to force the school boards and the teachers’ unions to protect teachers,” she said.
Marshall said the teachers would seek an expedited hearing because they allege the conduct remains ongoing. She expressed concern about tribunal backlogs and said some educators feared continuing to attend work.
She also said some teachers had children in the school system, adding to their safety concerns.
Asked about freedom of expression, Marshall anticipated that respondents might characterize some disputes as political disagreements. She rejected that interpretation, arguing that the incidents described in the complaints involved discriminatory conduct rather than political debate. “This is anti-Semitism … this is hate,” she said.
Steinberg said the teachers hoped the proceedings would produce greater transparency and accountability within school boards and unions. She said other educators had chosen not to come forward because they feared consequences for their employment or safety.
In recent years, numerous acts of violence against the Jewish community have taken place in Canada, including a recent shooting near a synagogue in Belleville, Ont., and synagogues and Jewish schools in Montreal and Toronto being targeted and shot at.
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