The House is holding a hearing about anti-Semitism in K-12 schools tomorrow. In advance of that there are a couple of reports about what has been going on in some progressive school districts in New York and California. New York City Schools Chancellor David Banks will be at the hearing tomorrow. Parents are hoping he'll be pushed to step up.

“We hope the hearing will hold Banks accountable and drive him to become the leader that Jewish students and families need,” said Tova Plaut, founder of NYCPS Alliance, an advocacy group of parents, educators and community members that has been vocal about the issue of antisemitism in city schools.

“I want to hear from Chancellor David Banks that he truly understands that some of the schools he runs are actively inhospitable to Jewish students and staff and it is his responsibility to address the cultural safety concerns,” added Maud Maron, a Manhattan mom and member of the Community Education Council District 2.

There have been a number of incidents at NYC schools including a riot that broke out at Hillcrest High School when students learned that one of the teachers there had attended a pro-Israel rally.

The scene at Hillcrest High School in Queens as a Jewish teacher hid in her locked office for hours while students demanded she be fired for attending a pro-Israel rally. pic.twitter.com/jzVCEofvJS

— Steve McGuire (@sfmcguire79) November 25, 2023

The teacher in question had to be rushed into a locked office for her protection. The situation was just as bad at Origins High School where a Jewish teacher was terrorized by students.

On Oct. 26, just three weeks after the Oct. 7 Hamas massacre of 1,200 Israelis, 40 to 50 teens marched through Origins HS in Sheepshead Bay waving a Palestinian flag and chanting “Death to Israel!” and “Kill the Jews!” staffers said...

According to interviews with multiple staffers, and a Jewish student’s safety transfer request, recent hate incidents include:

• A student painted a mustache on his face to look like Hitler, and banged on classroom doors. When someone opened, he clicked his heels and raised his arm in the Nazi gesture, security footage shows.
• Three swastikas in one week were drawn on teachers’ walls and other objects, a manager found.
• A 10th-grader told Kaminsky, 33, who is Jewish, “I wish you were killed.”
• Another student called her “a dirty Jew” and said he wished Hitler could have “hit more Jews,” including her.
• Students pasted drawings of the Palestinian flag and notes saying “Free Palestine” on Kaminsky’s classroom door. One scribbled note that said simply, “Die.”...

About 40% of Origins students are Muslim. DOE stats list 22% as Asian, 22% Black, 17% Hispanic and 32% white.

The NY Times has a story today about  a battle taking place inside Berkeley's public schools between pro-Palestinian teachers and parents and pro-Israel parents. The controversy started with a walkout organized by the Arab Resource and Organizing Center.

On Oct. 18, hundreds of Berkeley High School students, with the blessing of some of their teachers, left their classrooms in the middle of the day and gathered at a nearby park.

“Free Palestine!” they chanted. “Stop bombing Gaza!”

“From the river to the sea!”...

Some Jewish students, and their self-described Zionist parents, felt frightened by what they saw and heard, including a vulgar shout about Zionism — a claim vigorously denied by demonstrators.

The Brandeis Center and the ADL sent a lengthy letter to the US Dept. of Education highlighting what has been happening at Berkeley USD since 10/7.

Reported incidents of anti-Semitism include school “walkouts” praising Hamas with students shouting “f-- the Jews” and “KKK.” Teachers use class time to propagandize that the Hamas massacre was admirable “resistance.” Following their teachers’ lead, students bully their Jewish peers and deride their physical appearance.  Parents regularly report anti-Semitic incidents affecting their children to the administration, but BUSD has done nothing to address, much less curtail, the hostile environment that has plagued BUSD for over four months. At most, misguided administrators have attempted to “resolve” problems involving teachers by moving Jewish and Israeli students into new classes. As a result, anti-Semitism is normalized throughout BUSD. And teachers have responded with threats. One teacher approached a parent who had complained about her, saying...

I'd love to tell you what the teacher said but it's redacted in the letter. In any case, the letter goes on to more or less identify two specific teachers who've been using their classrooms to push anti-Israel propaganda.

BHS art teacher...has spent significant class time imposing his anti-Semitic views on students by showing them violent pro-Hamas videos, projecting anti-Israel and anti-Semitic images during class, papering his classroom walls with these images, and promoting the October 18, 2023 Walkout for Palestine and organizing the February 2, 2024 demonstration. Following the October 7 massacre,  displayed violent and inflammatory materials in his classroom including a projection of an image of a fist holding a Palestinian flag and punching through a Star of David.

A history teacher was also singled out.

BHS History teacher...expresses anti-Semitic stereotypes and defamations in class. Since October 7th, Jewish and Israeli students have repeatedly made requests to transfer out of her class. The students often change classes, but  anti-Semitic conduct persists. Students in her class are particularly fearful of retaliation because she teaches 11th and 12th grades, and they are concerned that their complaints will impact college admissions.  Despite the fear of retaliation, Jewish and Israeli students still feel compelled to leave her class due to the anti-Semitic climate. For example,  recently called Israel an “apartheid state,” a common anti-Semitic defamation. She recently required her students to respond to the following prompt in class: “To what extent should Israel be considered an Apartheid State?” After showing a one-sided anti-Israel video,  said she could not find a video defending the Israeli side of the debate and that articles that opposed the apartheid narrative were “laughable.”

The NY Times identifies this teacher as Becky Villagran. She calls the complaints that her class is anti-Semitic ridiculous because she herself is Jewish.

“I’m Jewish, my mom is Jewish, I grew up Jewish,” Ms. Villagran says. “I’m not antisemitic. That makes no sense.”

She can deny it all she wants but students in her classroom know which way the wind is blowing.

As a homework assignment, [Villagran] asked Student F to identify her wishes for 2024. Student F said her greatest desire for 2024 was for Israel to defeat Hamas. She wrote this on the worksheet but did not feel comfortable turning it in, fearing how [Villigran] would react. Student F felt so unsafe in  class that she censored herself, hiding her identity, and stifling her honest expression. In the end, Student F was so distressed by the hostile environment in [Villigran's] classroom and the failure of the school to take any action that her parents removed her from the school. 

We'll probably be hearing more about these teachers tomorrow during the congressional hearing.