Education and Workforce Committee Chairman Tim Walberg (R-MI) is launching an investigation into three school districts (Berkeley Unified School District, Fairfax County Public Schools, and the School District of Philadelphia) after receiving disturbing reports of Jewish students being harassed and subjected to open antisemitism in their classrooms and hallways.
In the letter to Berkeley Unified School District (BUSD), Walberg and Early Childhood, Elementary, and Secondary Education Subcommittee Chairman Kevin Kiley (R-CA) write: "Some teachers and administrators across BUSD allegedly facilitate and encourage this hostility, while others fail to act in response to it. For example, since October 7th, BUSD teachers, staff, and administrators have allegedly urged students to join walkouts and demonstrations during school hours that isolate and alienate Jewish students. At one such walkout, students were allegedly chanting 'Kill the Jews.' Antisemitism has also infected the classroom, with a teacher at Berkeley High School displaying an image of a fist destroying the Star of David and allegedly describing it as 'standing up for social justice.'" Read the full BUSD letter here.
In the letter to Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS), Walberg writes: "FCPS experienced significant antisemitic incidents even prior to the October 7, 2023, terrorist attacks against Israel. Jewish students allegedly faced repeated antisemitic bullying, including other students making the 'Heil Hitler' salute and throwing coins at them. Another school for years allegedly refused to remove a hallway display that included painted tiles, 40 percent of which featured swastikas and Nazi flags. Just prior to the October 7th attacks, one high school’s Muslim Students' Association (MSA) hosted a speaker who had made grotesque antisemitic statements. For example, he had tweeted, 'I’m not racist I love everyone. Except the yahood [Jews],' and 'Never met a Jew who didn’t have a huge nose.'" Read the full FCPS letter here.
In the letter to the School District of Philadelphia (SDP), Walberg and Rep. Ryan Mackenzie (R-PA) write: "Today, SDP employs numerous educators who allegedly promote antisemitic content in their classrooms. One such teacher has allegedly threatened Jewish parents and students online. She and other Philadelphia educators also allegedly use lessons from an effort called Teaching Palestine, whose class materials rationalize terrorist violence and advocate for the destruction of Israel. In addition, SDP employs a senior administrator—its director of social studies curriculum—who has been widely condemned by Jewish advocacy groups in light of his 'pattern of denying the Jewish connection to the Land of Israel, refusing to speak about peace or coexistence, and downplaying the lived experiences of Jewish people in the face of violence.' In a recent example, after the murder of two Israeli embassy workers and the antisemitic firebombing attack in Colorado, the senior administrator wrote, 'The groups who align themselves with American savageness should not be surprised when the savageness is turned on you[.]'" Read the full SDP letter here.
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