Earlier this week, Jews in Ontario and throughout the world observed Yom ha-Shoah, the day of commemoration for the six million Jews who were murdered by Nazi Germany and its collaborators during the Holocaust.

Known in English as Holocaust Remembrance Day, Yom ha-Shoah also commemorates the members of the Jewish resistance who fought against the Nazis during the Holocaust. Yom ha-Shoah reminds us that the Holocaust is both a lesson from the past and a warning for the future. It shows us the perils of indifference and the horrific consequences when hatred is allowed to flourish unchecked.

On October 7, to quote Rex Murphy, “a cowardly, medieval murder cult (campus heroes), Hamas took the lives of over 1,200 Jews” and others in Israel. Since then, we’re facing an anti-Semitic increase in events beyond acceptable levels here even in Canada, because really the only acceptable level is zero.

Anti-Semitic incidents take many forms—hate speech, vandalism and intimidation—but they are all manifestations of a broader attack on the fundamental idea that all Ontarians should be treated equally with respect and feel safe to live their lives freely in Ontario.

The mass murder of the Holocaust lasted from 1941 to 1945, but it is important to remember that it started long before then, almost a decade before, in 1932. The best way to stop anti-Semitism is to ensure it never starts. As human beings, we all share a duty to all other human beings to treat them with dignity and respect, because they are human beings. We cannot forget the terrible tragedy of the Holocaust and the lessons learned. We must always stand up against anti-Semitism and all forms of hate. Never again is now.