EDMONTON — A Holocaust education centre in Edmonton is urging city officials to rename Savaryn Drive, which honours Peter Savaryn, a former member of the 14th Waffen Grenadier Division of the SS. The SS unit was implicated in atrocities, including the massacre of approximately 1,000 civilians in Huta Pieniacka during the Second World War.
Separately, in London, Ontario, the Friends of Simon Wiesenthal Center (FSWC) has called the name Max Brose Drive “unacceptable.” The street honours Max Brose, a Nazi Party member whose company manufactured armaments and gasoline canisters for the regime and profited from the use of slave labour.
These are two distinct advocacy efforts by respected Jewish and Holocaust-education organizations. The Edmonton campaign emanates from a Holocaust centre concerned about the legacy of names that honour individuals affiliated with genocidal regimes.
In London, FSWC issued its appeal directly to city leadership, emphasizing the emotional and moral harm such names cause Jewish communities and Holocaust survivors.
FSWC, in its letter, pointed out that memorializing figures tied to Nazi crimes conflicts with Canadian values. The group noted that Canada’s award of the Order of Canada to Peter Savaryn prompted a formal apology from the Governor General in 2023.
This article is based on verified information from CTV News and FSWC releases.