Jewish Heritage Month

May 1, 2023

The cover of Charlotte Schallié's graphic novel "But I Live: Three Stories of Child Survivors of the Holocaust." Photo credit: Geoff Howe

May marks Canadian Jewish Heritage Month. Recognized by the federal government since 2018, it is an opportunity to learn about and celebrate Jewish culture, history and heritage, and the invaluable contributions by Jewish Canadians to Canada. At UVic we are proud to celebrate this month with the community. We encourage you to learn more and check out the following resources.

Learn about the past and present

Find out about UVic’s graduate program in Holocaust studies.
Read the stories in UVic News about new generations learning about antisemitism and helping illuminate one of the darkest times in history.
Check out the project Narrative Art and Visual Storytelling in Holocaust and Human Rights Education—an international initiative, launched in 2019, that brings together graphic novelists from three continents with Holocaust survivors, including leading UVic Holocaust scholar Charlotte Schallié, to teach the next generation about racism, antisemitism, human rights and social justice. The book is the 2023 Prose Awards Category Winner in two categories and was just announced as a finalist for the Western Canada Jewish Book Awards.
Read about Jewish immigration history through Library and Archives Canada.
View the Jewish Museum & Archives of BC’s online exhibits that highlight the community’s rich 160-year history, and listen to recorded interviews from the Oral History Online Library.
Explore the data within the Canadian Jewish Heritage Network. A good place to start is one of the gallery collections at the bottom of the page.
Take online lessons from Voices Into Action, designed by the Canadian Institute for the Study of Antisemitism, to learn about human rights, antisemitism, racism, genocide, immigration and more.

three people — Micha Menczer, David Schaffer (Holocaust survivor) and Miriam Libicki (artist) at the Victoria Book Launch of “But I Live: Three Stories of Child Survivors of the Holocaust” (September 11, 2022). Photo credit: Geoff Howe

UVic resources and supports

Spiritual care

The Multifaith Centre at UVic has a Jewish spiritual care provider on site to provide emotional, social and spiritual support.

Hillel BC’s UVic branch

Hillel BC’s branch at UVic provides a warm, welcoming environment where students can grow religiously, culturally, socially and ethically.

LibGuide on combating antisemitism

Explore the educational guide to books, articles and additional resource sites developed by UVic Libraries alongside members of the Jewish community. Additional anti-racism and anti-oppression resources are also available through the UVic library guide.

In partnership with UVic’s Department of Germanic and Slavic Studies, UVic Libraries has launched a digital exhibit, Stories of the Holocaust: Local Memory and Transmission, featuring 10 stories told by local community members whose families were devastated by the Holocaust.