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School displays controversial exhibit

By Steve LeBlanc, Canadian Champion Staff

News
Oct 08, 2008

For Ian Jones, education is about exposure, not exclusion.
With that in mind, the Milton District High School principal wasn’t about to shield his students from a controversial component of what he views as a valuable teaching tool when it arrived last week.

The Holocaust exhibit gained mainstream attention recently when one of its four panels — ‘The Making of a War Criminal’ — was banned by the City of Toronto.

The two-metre tall by six-metre wide display compares Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to Adolf Hitler, showing a picture of the Fuhrer saluting and the Iranian president with a burning devil over his shoulder.

According to their display policy, Toronto City officials rejected the exhibit because it may “stereotype or promote views and ideas which are likely to promote discrimination, contempt or hatred for any persons.”

Shown at the Ontario Police College in July, ‘The Making of a War Criminal’ was taken down following complaints from a few cadets.

Jones certainly doesn’t deny that the panel has some disturbing material — including Ahmadinejad’s reference to the Holocaust being a “fairy tale” and his belief that Isreal “must be wiped off the map” — but felt it was important to showcase the exhibit unedited.

“It’s (censorship) a slippery slope,” said MD’s principal, whose school is the first to display the touring exhibit put together by Friends of the Simon Wiesenthal Center for Holocaust Studies and includes panels entitled ‘Heroes of the Holocaust,’ ‘History of the Holocaust’ and ‘Teaching Peace and Human Rights by Example.’ “I’m not going to start telling my students what they can and can’t learn about.”

The Holocaust display’s visit comes at an opportune time for the local high school, which just began its newly-adopted Cultural Proficiency and Global Awareness course — which Jones and his fellow MD educators wrote themselves.

This marks the latest chapter in the principal’s ongoing efforts to promote tolerance and diversity — something he feels is particularly important with Milton’s ethnically-changing make-up.

Last fall his school was the first ever to visit the Museum of Tolerance in Los Angeles, while this week he has a Holocaust survivor coming in to speak to his students.

“Exposing students to this part of history has been a real goal of mine and I think we’ve been very proactive here,” said Jones.

MD students’ reaction to the Holocaust exhibit — and its controversial piece — seems to be one of general interest and acceptance.

“I like that we have it (exhibit) here. I didn’t even know about the comparison (between Ahmadinejad and Hitler) and don’t think we should be shielded from it,” said Grade 9 student Rachel Fisher.

Grade 11 student Owen Smith understands how some people could take exception to ‘The Making of a War Criminal,’ but feels that’s okay.

“I believe in freedom of opinion,” he said.

Those type of comments fall in line with what Jones was hoping for when he first decided to bring the exhibit to MD.

“As educators we have a responsibility to present the world around us as it is to kids and to then let them assess, probe, evaluate and question. My only concern is that things are fairly represented without bias, or if there is a bias then at least offer both sides and allow the students to evaluate the bias for themselves.”

On display until tomorrow, the exhibit’s look at the Holocaust is a fitting prelude for a number of students, who are set to visit a concentration camp later this month as part of a two-week excursion to Auschwitz, Poland.

Steve LeBlanc can be reached at sleblanc@miltoncanadianchampion.com .