Twelve Jewish teachers have filed human rights complaints naming the Ottawa-Carleton District School Board (OCDSB), one of four Ontario school boards at the centre of the filings. The complaints went to the Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario. They allege discrimination and retaliation for reporting antisemitism.
Who is named
The complaints name the Toronto District School Board, the York Region District School Board, the Simcoe County District School Board and the Ottawa-Carleton District School Board. Two teachers' unions are also named: the Elementary Teachers' Federation of Ontario and the Ontario Secondary School Teachers' Federation.
For Ottawa families and staff, the key point is that the OCDSB is among the named respondents. The reporting we reviewed does not say how many of the 12 teachers worked in Ottawa, and it does not include a response from the OCDSB. If the board comments, we will update this story.
What the teachers are asking for
Each teacher seeks $150,000 in general damages for discrimination, plus compensation for psychological counselling. They claim unfair treatment based on creed, ethnic origin and ancestry.
Each teacher also asks the tribunal to order the respondents to adopt the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance definition of antisemitism.
Lawyer Kathryn Marshall said the aim goes beyond money. "The objective is really to get accountability and institutional change," she said.
What the lawyer says teachers experienced
Marshall described incidents she said teachers faced at work. "They've experienced things like going to school and having swastikas written on chalkboards on their desks," she said.
She also said teachers who reported antisemitism were treated as the source of the trouble. "They were told that they were the problem, that they were the ones who were perhaps causing political disputes to erupt at school," Marshall said.
These are allegations made in complaints filed with the tribunal. They have not been tested there, and the reporting we reviewed does not describe any ruling.
How others have responded
The Toronto District School Board said it thoroughly investigated reports and that antisemitism has no place in its schools. "Antisemitism has no place in our communities or schools," the board said.
Education Minister Paul Calandra's office also responded. It said: "Every student and educator deserves to feel safe, respected, and supported and to know that when they raise serious concerns, those concerns will be taken seriously and addressed appropriately."
The reporting we reviewed does not include responses from the Ottawa-Carleton board, the other two named boards, or the two teachers' federations.
What happens next
The tribunal has not, in the reporting we reviewed, announced a hearing date or a decision. Until it does, the complaints are claims that the named boards and unions will have a chance to answer. For Ottawa readers, the OCDSB's name on the list means the board is now part of a provincial case about how schools handle reports of antisemitism from their own staff.
Sources: CP24, The Globe and Mail
