US elections and anti-Semite indoctrination in K12 schools

Joe Biden is out, and Kamala Harris seems to be in. What has the Jewish voter to say, if anything, in this matter? How will this affect the Jewish community in the US? Is the selection of J.D. Vance to the Republican ticket, good or bad for Jews? And what about the Independent candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr?

To answer this question you should ask yourself: What is the main issue that the Jewish community in the US should look at, when going to decide whom to vote for next November?

My answer is:  Do what is best for your children, protect your children, ensure that the place where they spend most of their daily hours, the public school, is a safe place for them. Vote in the coming November elections in the US for those candidates or parties who are against indoctrination of minors in K12 schools.

I am not talking about checking the standard pro-Israel declarations in their platforms. I am talking specifically about requesting to include explicitly in their platforms that their party is against anti-Semitic indoctrination in K12 schools under the mantle of anti-Zionism or “Teach-Palestine-only” attitudes.

Your active participation in the political process in the US, and your decision about which party you will vote for in the November 2024 elections in the US, are important: Think of your kids, who are minors and forced to take an “Ethnic Studies” course to graduate: they should not be subjected to harassment and anti-Jewish hatred while taking this course. Do not underestimate the long-term psychological damage caused by an adult, disguised as a teacher, indoctrinating self-hate to a Jewish minor in an unequal relationship in front of a class in an officially compulsory “Ethnic Studies” course for 9^th graders in high-school, or, even worse, to younger kids in regular courses in elementary school. There is nothing “consensual” in this teacher-student relationship. Anti-Semitism should not be allowed in K12 schools, neither openly nor disguised as anti-Zionism, boycotts of Israel or pollyannaish and lachrymose versions of the Palestinian side of the conflict.

Different approaches to fight anti-Semitism in K12 schools

There are several approaches to fight anti-Semitic indoctrination in K-12 schools.

1) The passive, wait for this to happen, approach

One approach, that is being adopted by the Jewish communities in California, is to go after each individual school district known to promote anti-Semitic material, and sue to remove this material. I wish them good luck: There are more than 1,000 school districts in California alone. Every one of them can develop its own curriculum for the mandatory “Ethnic Studies” course in their schools. Individual school districts are spending hundreds of thousands of dollars of State funds to develop materials for this course and the proponents of the “Teach-Palestine-only” curricula are eagerly taking these funds to sustain themselves and develop the materials for the K12 school districts. And, frankly speaking, they are well organized at the state and national level, experienced, aggressive, and they do not find much competition for these State funds. And … they have the backing of the National Education Association (NEA) [1], the largest union in the US, and are actively promoting their objectives within the NEA [2]. The capacity of the Jewish organizations is limited. They will not be able to timely scrutinize the content of every “Ethnic Studies” course taught in the California public schools (and in other states), and sue to eliminate any anti-Semitic content in them.

2) The active, preventive approach

Given the limitations of the passive approach, a second approach – that can run concurrently with the first approach – is to issue a preventive request to all the school districts stating that either both perspectives of the Arab-Israeli conflict should be discussed in class – or none of them.

For this purpose, the Jewish communities should be ready to present to school districts a list of reference materials representing the Jewish perspective of the Arab-Israeli conflict. It should not be difficult. For instance (and I am sure that many other examples can be added), I recommend the short book:

“Farewell, Aleppo: My father, my people, and their long journey home” (2014)

by Claudette E. Sutton

The book is suited for children in Middle school (grades K7-8) and even the upper grades of elementary school (grades K5-6.) “Farewell Aleppo” is the captivating story of a Jewish family that had lived in Aleppo, Syria, from time immemorial, as many other Jews in the Middle East. Today the family has been dispersed across several countries, including Israel and the US. Claudette E. Sutton lives in Santa Fe, New Mexico, US. I am sure that the Jewish community in the US will not find difficult to add many other References relating the Jewish experience and, finally, the ethnic cleansing of the Jewish communities from the Arab countries. This is the dark side of the Arab-Israeli conflict, that neither the West nor the Arab world want people to see or consider.

Perhaps, in only one respect it will not be easy. Although the Jewish communities share an affinity and sympathy towards the Jewish State – there is within them a multiplicity of opinions regarding how to solve the Arab-Israeli conflict. Furthermore: some Jewish communities are simply worried or terrified about being seen as openly defending the State of Israel. They could open themselves to becoming a target of physical attacks to their synagogues and their members.

This is why I think that the Jewish community has so far adopted the passive approach described before: Wait first for Jewish parents to discover that their children are taught anti-Semitic material at their local school, and then go and sue the school district to remove this material.  I already explained the limitations of this approach.

What materials should the Jewish communities request to include specifically in an “Ethnic Studies” course for 9^th graders, representing the Jewish perspective of the Arab-Israeli conflict? If you do not have any other suggestion, I recommend to begin with my book:

“Ethnic Studies in K12 schools: The Jewish module” (August 2024 edition)

by Jaime Kardontchik

The book can be downloaded for free at:

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/361800823_Ethnic_Studies_in_K12_schools_The_Jewish_module

The book will always be available for free download to all: the general public, teachers, and students. (It is also available at Amazon, in paperback and eBook formats.)

Cover of the paperback edition of my book “Ethnic Studies in K12 schools: The Jewish module” (courtesy of the author)

School Districts that insist on teaching the Palestine perspective in an “Ethnic Studies” course, should be required to teach also the Jewish perspective and include my book in the Syllabus of the course as required material for teaching and discussion in class. Otherwise, they could be sued for violating Article 26 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights [3], for violating Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 [4], and for going against the will of the people: bill HR185 passed by Congress in 2008 [5].

3) The political approach

Finally, there is a third approach to fight anti-Semitism at K12 schools. In the long run, I think it is the best. I referred to it at the beginning of this article: Vote in the coming November elections in the US for those candidates or parties who are against indoctrination of minors in K12 schools.

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References

[1] In July 2022, the NEA approved the following resolution (“NBI 13”): “The NEA will support members who educate students and other members about the history, geography and current affairs of the Palestinian people. NEA will provide state affiliates with a clear protocol for members doing this work to utilize when they are under attack.”

[2] Bethany Mandel and Nicole Neily, “NEA’s leftist, anti-Israel agenda bills guised as ‘education’ likely to pass”, New York Post, July 5, 2024. This article describes some of the proposals raised in the latest annual convention of the NEA, on July 2024. They include: teach about the history of the Nakba, educate about the difference between anti-Zionism and antisemitism, about the anti-Israel Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) campaign, about genocide, and so on.

[3] Article 26 of the Universal Declaration of Human rights states:

“… Education shall promote understanding, tolerance and friendship among all nations, racial or religious groups …

“… Parents have a prior right to choose the kind of education that shall be given to their children”.

[4] Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, prohibits discrimination based on race, color, or national origin in programs and activities that receive federal financial assistance.

[5] HR 185 Bill (year 2008) adopted by the US Congress. This bill states that “Middle East refugee resolutions which include a reference to the Palestinian refugee issue must also include a similarly explicit reference to the resolution of the issue of the Jewish refugees from Arab countries”.