The Canadian Institute for the Study of Antisemitism (CISA) had a very successful first year and much of this can be attributed to the positive support and keen interest of our community. The public response to our educational programming has been gratifying and we hope to expand this constructive relationship on campus and in the wider community in the years to come.

Many people understand that Antisemitism continues to be a social and political problem that requires serious attention and deserves scholarly analysis. There is a near-total void in academia and in human rights discourse when it comes to the subject of Antisemitism and CISA is designed to help remedy this absence. Our Academic Council is composed of 34 distinguished international scholars who are all intent upon working toward this goal in a cooperative manner with the seven existing Institutes worldwide.

CISA was launched in the 2011-2012 academic year with three very successful events. In coordination with the Jewish Foundation of Manitoba (JFM), UN Watch’s Executive Director, Hillel Neuer, spoke to students and faculty at U of M about the UN Human Rights Council in November; Director and Producer Gloria Greenfield was our guest in January to screen her new film Unmasked: Judeophobia and the Threat to Civilization; and US Special Envoy Hannah Rosenthal delivered CISA’s First Shindleman Family Lecture at the Hotel Fort Garry on May 7, after a reception held in her honour.

CISA is a national organization with a growing number of supporters across the country, including the Rubin family who graciously hosted an evening at their home on May 17, 2012 to introduce CISA to leading members of the Toronto community. While there, CISA’s Director met with the chair and staff of the Sarah and Chaim Neuberger Holocaust Education Centre to introduce them to CISA and begin to develop a cooperative working relationship. Unquestionably a world-class institution, the Toronto Centre is the leader in Canadian Holocaust Education and is an important resource for CISA.

The Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs (CIJA) invited our Director to give lectures in Toronto and Montreal in mid-May on the growing problem of anti-Zionism and its relationship to Antisemitism. The concern for the future of Israel and for the diaspora community is palpable in these venues and CISA’s work is highly valued and sincerely appreciated, as evidenced by letters from the public sent to the Institute and its board of directors.

As recently discussed at the JFM’s Women’s Endowment Fund Luncheon, CISA’s mandate is focused and unique: the promotion and advancement of scholarship and education on the subject of Antisemitism, directed especially toward the majority of students who have very little knowledge of, or awareness about, the subject.

To meet this ambitious goal, CISA is developing a unique university program that will offer university-accredited courses leading to an undergraduate degree in the study of Antisemitism. In addition, one of our long-term goals is to have a course on the history of Antisemitism offered at every major Canadian university. CISA’s endowment fund, held by the Jewish Foundation of Manitoba, will support these programs and all contributions made to the Institute and to the endowment fund are tax deductible. Please feel free to join CISA’s email list.

CISA’s Board of Directors would like to thank all of our supporters in Winnipeg, Toronto, and across the country, and look forward to announcing our next academic year of programming this fall.

Mr. Sandy Shindleman, Chairman

Dr. Catherine Chatterley, Founding Director

Ms. Ida Albo

Mr. Mel Lazareck

Dr. Deborah Schnitzer

Mr. Syd Thompson