In a House hearing on Wednesday, the superintendent of Berkeley Public Schools pushed back against claims of disturbing instances of antisemitism in her school district.
In the hearing, "Confronting Pervasive Antisemitism in K-12 Schools,” Superintendent Enikia Ford Morthel claimed that “any suggestion or assertion that antisemitism is pervasive in BPSD is false,” despite there being several documented instances of antisemitism in the schools.
GOP Rep. Kevin Kiley (CA) pointed out that these instances include students hearing antisemitic remarks from other students, such as “kill the Jews,” non-Jewish students asking Jewish students what their number is, in reference to the numbers tattooed on Jews at concentration camps, and antisemitic rants from teachers.
“Jewish students…are learning to keep their heads down, hide their Judaism, and move through their school days in fear. Some students have left the district due to pervasive bullying,” Kiley said.
.@BerkeleyUnified Superintendent Ford denies that antisemitism is pervasive in her school system...
— House Committee on Education & the Workforce (@EdWorkforceCmte) May 8, 2024
But @RepKiley reads an exhaustive, stunning, and tragic list of antisemitic acts within Berkeley schools 📢 pic.twitter.com/aRBhxn2Gqx
🧵 Antisemitism within @BerkeleyUnified K-12 school district includes instances of calls to "Kill the Jews" and the public display of "resistance art" that depicts a fist punching through the Star of David.
— House Committee on Education & the Workforce (@EdWorkforceCmte) May 8, 2024
According to a complaint filed with @usedgov's OCR, pupils were heard chanting, e.g., "Kill the Jews," "F--- the Jews," "F--- Israel," "KKK," "Kill Israel," "I hate those people," and "From the River to the Sea, Palestine will be free."
— House Committee on Education & the Workforce (@EdWorkforceCmte) May 8, 2024
In a statement published on the school’s website, Morthel said, “Antisemitic incidents in our schools are deeply concerning and unacceptable, as are incidents of Islamophobia, racism, homophobia, bullying, othering, and all forms of hate. As a district, and a community, we stand against hate. This is a deeply held value in Berkeley. Every student deserves to be in schools that are nurturing, responsive, and safe.”
“Let me be clear. Antisemitism is real. It is a critical issue that we are conscious of in our country–one that has shown up in some of our schools. While reports of antisemitism at BUSD have increased since October 7, and this is deeply concerning, antisemitism is not pervasive in our schools. This is not who we are,” she continued.
In the hearing, Kiley pointed out that several California school districts implemented antisemitic curriculum into their schools.
California school districts intentionally introduced anti-Semitic curriculum into their classrooms. Unsurprisingly, they saw a sharp rise in anti-Semitic incidents. pic.twitter.com/Qg1XbRiBB9
— Rep. Kevin Kiley (@RepKiley) May 8, 2024