Celebrate Jewish Heritage This May!

In addition to being Asian Heritage Month, May is also the month we mark the contributions, culture and resilience of Canada’s Jewish community. This was first officially commemorated with the Canadian Jewish Heritage Month Act in 2018.

Here are some resources and upcoming events for those looking to celebrate Jewish heritage this May:

• The image above is the work of Jewish-Canadian artist Julie Gladstone, and explores her Sephardic family’s roots and a legacy of diaspora that has lasted since her family’s expulsion from the town of Béjar in 1492. You can find out more here.

• Learn the history of Jewish people in Canada. You can take a Canadian Jewish History Virtual Tour at the Jewish Virtual Library!

• Here’s a list of resources from the Jewish Federations of Canada, including resources surrounding the Holocaust, Jewish museums, Canadian Jewish history and more.

• The Jewish Museum & Archives of British Columbia is putting together a COVID-19 exhibition. Contribute your voice here!

• Check out other Jewish arts organizations and museums in BC, including the Chutzpah! Festival, the Norman Rothstein Theatre, the Cherie Smith JCC Jewish Book Festival and the Vancouver Holocaust Education Centre,

• Actor Jenifer Brousseau will be reading excerpts from Anne Frank's Diary of a Young Girl in daily video installments, starting May 5. (Note: this event has been postponed.)

The list above is by no means comprehensive. We hope you find these resources useful in your celebration of Jewish Heritage Month!