Community update: Addressing antisemitism at FIFSW

Dear FIFSW community,

As we continue to be affected by global crises and daily news of war, violence, and political actions that cause fear, worry, and grief, I have heard from many who have expressed care and support for the students, staff, and faculty members of FIFSW and the communities we serve. I want to express my appreciation to the people who have reached out to share their perspectives and suggestions as we navigate these challenging times. We are truly grateful for everyone’s involvement.

I am aware that multiple communities are still coping with fear and trauma related to the events unfolding in Southwest Asia (the Middle East). In the community update that was sent out earlier this year, I addressed associated concerns raised in the Calls to Action that were delivered to the Faculty. In that message, I emphasized our social work values, including our commitment to creating space for everyone within our community to engage in supportive dialogue. Although I made reference to growing antisemitism in that message, I did not speak to the activities the Faculty has been taking to address it. Many have expressed interest in learning more about these activities, therefore, I’m taking the opportunity now to share this information, as well as updates on University-led initiatives that aid our efforts.

It is important to recognize that antisemitism is a global concern with local reverberations that are reflected in daily news reports and in the stories shared in our communities. In the current context, hate-based threats and assaults on Jewish communities have increased, both in person and online. Many people with Jewish identities or ties to Israel have expressed concerns about sharing their viewpoints or even their identities, for fear of repercussions. As a school of social work with commitments to promoting social justice, upholding human rights, and supporting open dialogue and understanding, we cannot accept a situation where such things go unremarked and unaddressed.

FIFSW has recognized the need for attention to antisemitism and the experiences of Jewish people. In recent years we have taken the following actions to address this need.

• Since the launch of the University of Toronto’s 2021 Antisemitism Working Group report and my arrival in 2022, I have been actively engaging in conversations with individuals and organizations in the Jewish social service sector and internal stakeholders and experts in the University, including leaders at the Anne Tanenbaum Centre for Jewish Studies and the Lab for the Global Study of Antisemitism. We have discussed strategies and collaborations to address the gap in social work knowledge and research about Jewish communities and antisemitism. I believe FIFSW can make impactful contributions to policy and practice that serves the needs of Jewish communities locally and globally. We are eager to have community input on this and look forward to sharing an exciting development in this area in the new year.
• The Faculty hosted a lecture by Dr. Paula David on “Lessons Learned from Holocaust Survivors” (made possible through the Janis Rotman Distinguished Lecture Series on Mental Wellness) in Fall 2023. The lecture engaged public discourse on antisemitism, intergenerational trauma, and caring for survivors of oppression, genocide and extreme trauma in a post-Holocaust world.
• Faculty members, staff, and students have been collaborating with FIFSW’s Equity, Diversity, Inclusion, Indigeneity and Accessibility (EDIIA) office to host a Braver Spaces group that began in Fall 2023 for Jewish-identified people to share community.
• As with all our communities, FIFSW has worked to increase awareness of diversity in social work by regularly highlighting the work of Jewish social workers and Jewish social work organizations in our online stories, social media posts and monthly newsletter.

Our efforts are ongoing in all these areas and will be further informed by the activities announced in President Meric Gertler’s November 22 message to the U of T community, including the development of “a draft Guide to Law and Policy regarding Antisemitism and Anti-Israeli discrimination.” The Office of the President has invited community members to review the draft Guide and share feedback by completing a short questionnaire.

As with our responses to last year’s Calls to Action, our efforts to address antisemitism are connected to our broader efforts to foster an environment that is inclusive, welcoming, and free of discrimination. To that end, we have:

• engaged in professional development events for faculty members and staff like the October 2024 workshop “Dialogue Strategies for Difficult Conversations,” to increase our capacity for facilitating learning and discussion across challenging issues.
• updated the structure of FIFSW’s recently renamed EDIIA Committee to allow for broader engagement with students, staff, faculty, and alumni on the various issues that affect our mission as a school of social work.
• refined and clarified the process that our students, faculty, and staff can follow to report experiences of discrimination or harassment as outlined in the Ontario Human Rights Code and based on the University’s Statement on Prohibited Discrimination and Discriminatory Harassment.
• hosted a session for FIFSW students, staff and faculty in January 2024 called “Unpacking the Middle East: Applying Mindfulness” to make connections between epigenetics, intergenerational trauma, and physical, emotional, and mental responses being experienced in the Faculty and in the communities we serve.
• continued to support discussion, dialogue, and solidarity across student-initiated and student-led groups like the Muslim Social Work Student Association, the Black Social Work Student Association, the Truth and Reconciliation Collective, the Tamil Social Work Student’s Association, FIFSW4Palestine, the Art Collective, and the PhD Student DEI Community of Practice.

All of these activities are essential to cultivating the environment of inclusion and exploration that makes universities places of learning and personal growth. It is our enduring responsibility as a school of social work to learn from and work with our stakeholders to also recognize and respond to other issues, groups, and histories, bring them into our efforts to promote social change, and educate social workers prepared to serve the entire community. We will continue to share our activities through our newsletters, social media feeds, and EDI updates.

I am heartened by the progress that our community has made this fall to open space for dialogue and seek opportunities to promote inclusion. It is in these efforts to further understanding, connection, and respect that we best demonstrate we are a school of social work. This work would not be possible without the commitment of FIFSW staff, faculty, students, and partners, and I would like to thank everyone who has been involved in creating opportunities for learning, discussion, and listening.

Sincerely,

Charmaine C. Williams
Dean & Professor
Factor-inwentash Faculty of Social Work