The Foundation for the Compulsory Study of Genocide in Schools is hoping to pressure the government of Quebec to make mandatory the study of genocide
A petition currently at the National Assembly of Canada calls for Genocide Study to be made compulsory in Quebec.
Montreal Gazette reports that the Foundation for the Compulsory Study of Genocide in Schools had Liberal MNA David Birnbaum table the petition worrying that too many Quebec students finish high school with no knowledge of genocides, past or present, including the Holocaust, the Armenian genocide, Rwandan genocide and the cultural genocide of First Nations.
“We, the undersigned, ask that the National Assembly and the Minister of Education, Higher Education and Research act to make the study of genocide compulsory in all Quebec high schools as a means to creating a tolerant and peaceful society which is accepting of all cultures and regions,” concludes the petition.
The group had previously met with representatives of the Ministry of Education and had not had much success, therefore decided to pursue the matter politically.
There already is a compulsory class that deals with genocide called “Contemporary World” and Catherine Poulin, press attaché for the education minister, said it is not their intention to change the curriculum. However, Liberal MP Anthony Housefather argues that there should be more compulsory content related to genocide in schools all across Canada. Currently, it is up to teachers to decide how much they want to teach about genocide.
Montreal Gazette quotes foundation chairperson Heidi Berger, “there’s no time like now to make sure that every student graduating from Grade 11 understands what genocide is and the stages that lead to genocide.”
The petition, which collected about 3,000 signatures, states that “racial and cultural intolerance and discrimination are the preconditions associated with the beginnings of genocide,” and education is the key to recognizing and preventing discrimination and acts of hate among youth, and knowledge of genocides is essential to preventing such acts in the future.
