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our Mayor. I travelled with him to pay
homage at the infamous Auschwitz Concentration Camp where over one million
Jews were murdered. He was extraordinarily sympathetic. We also have
in Vaughan a wonderful police service
led by Chief Jolliffe and a team that has
addressed hate crime in the city professionally. Additionally, the York Region
Board of Education has given excellent
attention to our educational programming in order to build a more compassionate city.
Q. What accomplishment are you
most proud of – helping raise over
$75 million over your career, the
overall success you have brought to
FSWC, or being awarded the Queens
Diamond Jubilee Medal for Service to
Canada? Or does something else stick
out to you above these things?
A . I feel fortunate to have been given
this incredible opportunity to help make
a difference. What really sticks in my
mind are the countless people who have
helped me and believed in me every step
of the way. I have a team of mentors and
friends whom I trust as advisors and as
partners in our shared mission to make
the world a better place. So, if I had to
choose an accomplishment it would be
that I have been able to create a large
base of friends and supporters – both
near and far – who surround me and the
organization with love and compassion. I
owe them a great deal of thanks.
Q. Simon Wiesenthal famously said
that “Freedom is not a gift” – this
quote has become a rallying cry for
FSWC – what does it mean to you?
A. We take our freedom for granted.
Freedom, like all social movements, is
a social construct. Therefore, it can be
changed or altered in an instant if we are
not its protectors. For example, Adolph
Hitler came to power while Germany was
democratic. His Nazi party eventually
murdered six million Jews and launched
World War Two, which cost some 50 million lives. It is so important to understand
that our freedoms must be cherished and
protected; history has shown us how easily
they can be taken away.
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Q. This past July, Elie Wiesel passed
away. What does his loss mean to
the ongoing battle for human rights?
A . Every generation requires virtuous
people who champion morality. They set
parameters for the sacred and the profane.
They speak out and take risks when others
remain silent or oblivious – or even complicit in violence and abuse. Elie Wiesel
was a moral compass for the world – very
much like Mother Teresa or Martin Luther King Jr.
Q. What is the biggest threat to hu-
man rights moving forward? What role
does the digital landscape we live in
play in this threat?
A. One of the most significant threats to
humanity today is terrorism. Our police
services have managed to reduce the danger in Canada significantly – despite the
fact there have been very serious incidents
and threats. With respect to the digital
revolution, we have found over 15 years
of unparalleled growth of hate websites
on line. This includes social networking
where bullying and recruitment to terror
organizations is pervasive. In fact, we attribute a growth of antisemitism globally
to the pervasive nature of social networking. This is particularly true in university
campuses where extreme groups and faculty are posting material that forments
violence and hate. So while the Internet
is advanci ng humanity, we have found
throughout time that new technologies
can also be used for evil.
Q. FSWC offers a course on Heroes
– According to you, who is someone
alive today that qualifies for this hero
status and why?
A. Unfortunately, there is no one that
tops my list. However, I know of many
individuals who are contributing to
their communities and to society. I always say that I get to work with the nicest people in the world – those giving
to and participating in the promotion of
a positive world. Therefore, we can all
be Elie Wiesel, Martin Luther King Jr.
or Mother Teresa. As Anne Frank noted
while hiding in an attic from the Nazis,
“How wonderful it is that nobody need
wait a single moment before starting to
improve the world.”
Q. The Holocaust is not a Jewish
Story, it is a Human Story – do you
think most people understand this?
Why is it so important for people
to understand this?
A. I think most people still see the Holocaust as a Jewish story. It is indeed a
Jewish story – because mostly Jews were
murdered. But they were murdered by
non Jews. So, whose story should it be?
Indeed, it is humanity’s story to come to
terms with how this incomprehensible
tragedy could have happened, and it
is the responsibility of each and every
individual to ensure that hateful ideologies are countered with tolerance, compassion and a respect for diversity and
human rights.