January 23, 1:00 PM - Livestream & in person at the Massachusetts State House, Boston
Support Needed at the Massachusetts’ Special Commission on Combatting Antisemitism
Hello everyone, please see below for important information about how efforts are being made in Massachusetts to weaponize antisemitism in order to silence advocacy for Palestinians, and ways you can help to fight this.
Forwarded Message from Together for an Inclusive Massachusetts: The third meeting of Massachusetts’ Special Commission on Combatting Antisemitism is scheduled for January 23rd @ 1pm (State House and live streamed). Members of Together for an Inclusive MA will show up as our powerful alliance of organizations and individuals standing together against both antisemitism and anti-Palestinian racism. You can attend in-person or view the proceedings on livestream. Please let us know how you will be joining so we can track our allies’ participation. RSVP for details.
In this email:
What’s at stake in K-12 education
Attend the January 23rd Commission meeting (State House or live stream)
Share your experience for the February meeting
RSVP to attend the Jan 23rd Commission meeting!
What’s at Stake in K-12 Education
At the last Commission meeting, the Commission heard from a local superintendent who spoke about his district’s collective and inclusive response to antisemitism. Presenters also spoke about the impact of antisemitism on students’ well-being and the role of education on the Holocaust and hate symbols to educate the student body. One superintendent spoke of students' interest in discussing Israel/Palestine but teachers feeling “nervous” about leading those discussions in the classroom.
However, interspersed between discussions of antisemitic actions and their impact on students, some Commission members continued to push allegations that teaching about Palestine or Palestinian solidarity are forms of antisemitism. One Commissioner alluded to educator “indoctrination” in reference to teaching about Israel/Palestine. Another Commissioner chided schools for not forcefully responding to anti Zionism and reiterated that “Free Palestine” and “From the River to the Sea” are antisemitic statements that require a forceful response.
These and earlier messages from some Commission members are setting the stage for both censorship of Palestinian narratives in school curricula as well as increasing disciplinary actions against students and educators.executives and college administrations on workplace issues.
Attend the January 23rd meeting
The Commission will continue discussing Antisemitism in MA public and private K-12 schools at the January and February meetings and your presence is important to push back on these one-sided narratives. The January 23rd meeting will feature four presentations:
Parent Survey of Antisemitism in Schools by Anti-Defamation League Center for Antisemitism Research
Office of the Massachusetts Attorney General Presentation on First Amendment Considerations
Facing History and Ourselves Presentation on School Programming
Psychological Impact and Effects of Antisemitism on Students
The Commission chairs will also discuss plans for seeking public input and comment.
We ask for your commitment to join us and show up at this vital meeting. Can we count on you to stand together with us? This will not be the only meeting of the commission. We would love to see you at the subsequent commission meetings as well as at any actions between the meetings. Let us know.
The meeting will be held in Room A-2 at the State House and live streamed at Hearing Details - Combatting Antisemitism Please RSVP for more details.
Learn more about the Commission and its members as well as view past commission meetings here.
RSVP to attend the Jan 23rd Commission meeting!
Share Your Experience: February 10th Commission meeting
Together for an Inclusive MA was invited to present at the February 10th Commission meeting on K-12 education and we will advocate that the Commission:
Ensure that well-intentioned efforts to combat antisemitism are not co-opted to promote a divisive, Israel aligned political agenda that advances anti-Palestinian racism
Promote an understanding of antisemitism within a framework of collective liberation
Defend against censorship and alteration of MA’s award-winning history, social studies and English Language Arts curriculum standards
We are compiling testimony of students’ or educators’ experiences to help us advocate for these goals. Please reply to this email if you would like to share your positive or negative experience (including anonymously) in public or private schools. It is especially important to hear from you if allegations of antisemitism were used to justify censoring learning about Palestine or punishment for advocating for Palestinian rights.
Has the administration at your school supported or not supported your interest in working on Palestinian justice issues (or having discussions about the challenges in Palestine/Israel for example)? Were you targeted for speaking out? Are you a Jewish student open to sharing your own experience trying to learn about or advocate for Palestinian rights?
Together for an Inclusive MA will compile anonymous testimony to protect the identity of students and educators.
If you feel comfortable sharing your experience with the Commission (not anonymous), you can email SCCA@malegislature.gov directly and make sure to request your testimony be shared with all Commission members.
Let us know you'll join us January 23rd
Together for an Inclusive Massachusetts is a group of Jewish, Muslim, labor, education, civil rights and other organizations and individuals advocating for justice and equity in the Commonwealth. Our alliance includes representatives from Boston Workers Circle, Mass Peace Action, Jewish Voice for Peace Boston, If Not Now Boston, National Lawyers Guild - MA, Council on American-Islamic Relations - MA, Sawa: Newton-Area Alliance for Peace and Justice, the Alliance for Water Justice in Palestine, Arlington for Palestine and many others