News release

For Immediate Release
May 8, 2009

Canada’s largest Holocaust Education Symposium marks
25th anniversary

(CALGARY – May 8, 2009) For the past 25 years, approximately 40,000 students from all across Calgary have had the opportunity to hear first-hand accounts of the Holocaust by attending Mount Royal’s Holocaust Education Symposium. This milestone, for the largest symposium of this kind in Canada, is significant as first-hand accounts from survivors become more and more rare as each year passes. This year, another 2,400 Calgary high school students from public, separate and private schools will attend the Symposium which is being held from May 12 – 14, 2009.

The Symposium presents the personal stories of Holocaust survivors whose experiences shed light on the impact of racism and how it led to the murder of six million Jews. By imparting the lessons of the Holocaust, the survivors hope that future generations strive to live in a world of tolerance, peace and understanding.

“We want the students to realize that this is where racist attitudes ultimately lead and that they must guard against such attitudes – not just against Jewish people but all groups,” says Mount Royal Biology Instructor, Izak Paul, one of the Symposium organizers.

Calgary Holocaust survivors will provide students with an opportunity to engage in direct discussions with people who experienced first-hand the persecution of the Nazis. Eight noted historians will provide vital historical context for the students during the three-day event. The program will also include the BBC documentary film Genocide, which includes graphic footage from the Nazi archives. The students will then be divided into smaller groups to meet with survivors and hear their stories.

“This is the part of the program that has the greatest impact,” says Paul.

“What students note is that the survivors would have been their age during the Holocaust. It’s to the survivors’ credit that they come back year after year. They hope the students will learn from their experiences and understand that they must speak out to stop racism in our society.”

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For further information contact:
Fred Cheney, Media Relations Officer
Office of External Relations
Office: 403.440.5195
Cell: 403.542.7904
mediarelations@mtroyal.ca