Campus Anti-Semitism, Decades in the Making: A Teacher’s Perspective

Some claimed to be “shocked” at the beginning of the school year when swastikas were found painted on the walls of Nock Middle School, located at the Newburyport School District in Boston. This was preceded by an anti-Semitic video made to insult a Jewish student. To be honest, with the public schools turning a blind eye to anti-Semitism and progressive educators regarding Israel with great disdain, I wouldn’t be surprised if teachers encouraged the video. 

You can call me crazy, but in my experience as a public educator, anti-Semitism is rampant in the public education system. When I taught in Costa Mesa, California in the late 1990s, I particularly remember another history teacher admit that she avoids the lesson on Israel. Keep in mind that this teacher was promoted as the lead sixth-grade core teacher. 

My experience a couple of years later, teaching in Glendale, Calif. was no different. A Jewish student of mine received several anti-Semitic threats and was beaten and bullied for the whole school year. The students who hurt her weren’t punished in the same way a white student harassing an African-American student would be. To make things worse, other teachers made anti-Semitic comments about the student as well. I made the administration aware of the anti-Semitism coming from one particular teacher, but nothing was done.

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Originally published at JNS.org