The Massachusetts Special Commission on Combating Anti-Semitism has issued a preliminary report concluding that anti-Semitism has become a "pervasive and escalating problem" in Massachusetts public schools:
Antisemitism in Massachusetts K-12 public schools is a pervasive and escalating problem, with a large number of reported incidents of hate, bullying, harassment and discrimination experienced by families and teachers.
There has been a stark escalation of incidents in recent years, especially after the Hamas terrorist attack on Israel on October 7, 2023. Many Jewish students in Massachusetts schools are scared to publicly display their Judaism or let others know they are Jewish for fear of disparate treatment or bullying.
The report comes just over a week after the ADL, the Louis D. Brandeis Center for Human Rights Under Law and Mayer Brown LLP filed claims concerning "pervasive" and "rampant" anti-Semitism at Concord-Carlisle High School in Concord, Massachusetts with the U.S. Department of Education's Office for Civil Rights.
To say this is disconcerting is an understatement. If anti-Semitism is tolerated in public schools, then it will invariably be tolerated in other public institutions. Such toleration will lead to the gradual exclusion of Jews and Jewish organizations from civil society and eventually in legislation and regulations.
A perfect case in point is the decision of the National Education Association to dissociate itself from the ADL. Although the vote has been referred to the NEA's National Executive Committee, a majority of teachers have declared one of the most prominent Jewish organizations in the country is not welcome in their classrooms because its sympathies lie with Hamas instead of Israel.
In which case, the pervasive and escalating anti-Semitism in Massachusetts has reared its ugly head all over the country.
No comments:
Post a Comment