The Jewish community has long played a central role in labour struggles and in the fight against discrimination in Canada. In 1947, the Jewish Labour Committee successfully lobbied to pass the first anti-discrimination resolution at the Canadian Congress of Labour, demanding “vigorous action” in “the fight for full equality for all peoples, regardless of race, colour, creed, or national origin.” Indeed, before there were any national civil rights organizations in Canada, it was groups like the Jewish Labour Committee and the Canadian Congress of Labour that undertook the fight to expand civil rights and equality to all peoples in Canada.
For Jewish Heritage Month, CUPE honours the historic role of the Jewish community in the promotion and defence of labour rights and social justice, and we call on our members to take action against the alarming surge in antisemitism in Canada and around the world. We must remain united and vigilant in our collective struggle against anti-Jewish hate.