Letter to Paul Calandra, Minister of Education, from a concerned Toronto parent, August 18, 2025

Dear Minister Calandra,  

I am writing as an EXTREMELY concerned Canadian and mother of a TDSB student. It is not only misinformed, biased, and incorrect information that is being shared with the Ontario's teachers, but hateful, anti-Semitic, and dangerous rhetoric that is creating a culture of hate against Jewish students and teachers. 

There have been ZERO instances of APR in the school board and a TWO HUNDRED PERCENT increase in Jewish hate crimes in the schools and across the globe due to the blood libels being spread against Jews. 

The global climate for Jews is so dangerous that a beautiful young couple about to get engaged was shot dead outside the White House this summer, an elderly man wearing a kippa was brutally attacked in France this week, a pregnant American woman on vacation in France was also attacked when a German Sheppard was unleashed on her deliberately to shouts of "Free Palestine" (the equivalent of "Helil Hitler"), a Jewish father was viciously attacked, also this week, in Montreal in front of his young child to her screams and horror and an LGBTQ person at a pride festival had urine sprayed at him because  he had a pride flag with a Jewish star. A Jewish girls' elementary school, Bais Chaya Mushka, in North York, was shot at THREE TIMES. 

My 12-year-old son and his friends were told to "go to the gas chambers" by one student and, in another occasion, a kid on the basketball court yelled, "I wish the Nazis we're still  here so they could kill all of  you Jews." 

Why do YOU think this is happening?? 

Because it is not only tolerated, but now, it is explicitly being taught in response to  angry mobs being allowed and practically "encouraged" to influence our educators  Sadly, many of our educators are antisemites themselves, either because they were brought up in the Middle East and taught about intifada and also taught that they are oppressed and rewarded for killing Jews and/or because Tic Toc and Facebook reels are the new Encyclopedia Britannica.  

This one-sided propaganda-filled narrative not only needs to STOP EVERYWHERE, but especially in the public  schools. Public schools are a place for teaching the following: 

- the 3 Rs - reading, writing and arithmetic (Between COVID and screens, and now AI, our kids are so far behind in these fundamental, foundational skills.) 

- teaching KINDNESS and LOVE 

That's it, full stop. 

I welcome your response and further dialogue on this matter as I and many of my friends are scared to send our kids to school in September in this climate of hatred. It's feeling like 1939 Germany all over again and I never thought I'd see this in my lifetime. 

I await your response and, most importantly, action. 

Sincerely, 

SW (names withheld) Toronto