The Simon Wiesenthal Center is an international Jewish human rights organization dedicated to repairing the world one step at a time.  The Center’s multifaceted mission generates changes through the Snider Social Action Institute and education by confronting antisemitism, hate and terrorism, promoting human rights and dignity, standing with Israel, defending the safety of Jews worldwide, and teaching the lessons of the Holocaust for future generations.  With a constituency of over 400,000 households in the United States, it is accredited as an NGO at international organizations including the United Nations, UNESCO, and the Council of Europe.  Headquartered in Los Angeles, the Simon Wiesenthal Center maintains offices in New York, Toronto, Palm Beach, Paris Buenos Aires and Jerusalem.

The Museum of Tolerance, the Center’s educational arm, founded in 1993 challenges visitors to confront bigotry and racism, and to understand the Holocaust in both historic and contemporary contexts.  It hosts 350,000 visitors annually including 130,000 students.  Some of the programs sponsored by the Museum include:

•Tools for Tolerance – an all-day program that utilizes the Museum’s unique educational environment to explore issues of diversity and tolerance, as well as cooperation in the workplace and in the community.  To date, the Museum has trained over 100,000 professionals, including educators and, in partnership with the State of California, individuals in law enforcement.  Additionally, the program accommodates firefighters, social workers, health care professionals, attorneys, probation officers, and others.
•Teaching Steps to Tolerance – the Museum’s national program is designed for 5th and 6th grade educators and library media specialists to integrate the teaching of tolerance into their school’s curriculum.
•Task Force Against Hate – confronts extremism by developing strategies to combat Holocaust denial and to educate students about antisemitism and bigotry through conferences and training sessions held throughout the country.
•National Institute Against Hate Crimes – The Center, with support from the US Department of Justice and the Bureau of Justice Assistance, trains criminal justice professionals.
•Tools for Tolerance for Teens – reaches thousands of middle and high school students while Steps to Tolerance engages over 6,000 fifth and sixth graders each year.  For those who are not able to experience the Museum directly, Bridging the Gap reaches young people across the country through videoconferencing.

The New York Tolerance Center- in the heart of Manhattan, is a professional development multi-media training facility targeting educators, law enforcement officials, and state/local government practitioners. Modeled after the successful Tools for Tolerance Program at the Museum of Tolerance in Los Angeles, the Tolerance Center provides participants with an intense educational and experiential daylong training program. Through interactive workshops, exhibits, and videos, individuals explore issues of prejudice, diversity, tolerance, and cooperation in the workplace and in the community.

Moriah Films, the film division of the Simon Wiesenthal Center, was created to produce theatrical documentaries to educate both national and international audiences.  It focuses on the 3,500-year old Jewish experience as well as contemporary human rights and ethics issues.  Moriah has produced nine films to date, two of which have received the Academy Award for best feature documentary, The Long Way Home (1997) and Genocide (1981).