The California Board of Education has announced it will scrap its current draft ethnic studies curriculum and develop a new model curriculum following outrage by California lawmakers, activists and Jewish and pro-Israel groups for its "blatant bias against Israel."
The California State Board of Education stated that "the current draft model curriculum falls short and needs to be substantially redesigned."
"Following the Instructional Quality Commission's review and response to all public comments, a new draft will be developed for State Board of Education review and potential approval. The Board will ultimately adopt an ethnic studies model curriculum that aligns to California's values."
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Jewish lawmakers complained that the proposed lessons were anti-Semitic, while a conservative critic said that capitalism was presented as a "form of power and oppression." The clash comes as the law requires the state to adopt ethnic studies, which view history through the lens of diverse cultures.
"We really need some significant changes, if not to go back to square one," said Democratic state Sen. Ben Allen of Santa Monica, the caucus chairman. "Our concern is that the draft curriculum, as currently written, would literally institutionalize the teaching of anti-Semitic stereotypes in our public schools."
For instance, the proposed curriculum has lessons on identifying Islamophobia and other forms of discrimination but does not include ways to identify anti-Semitism. Song lyrics included in the draft also seem to support the stereotype that Jews control the news media, the caucus said.
"It would be a cruel irony if a curriculum meant to help alleviate prejudice and bigotry were to instead marginalize Jewish students and fuel hatred and discrimination against the Jewish community," the 14 caucus members said in a recent letter.
Jewish lawmakers said this was a particular danger following a rise in hate crimes against Jews in California last year and recent attacks on synagogues, including one in April. A 19-year-old gunman told investigators he was motivated by Jewish hatred when he killed a woman and wounded two other people, including a rabbi, at the Chabad of Poway synagogue near San Diego.
"Children are not born as bigots, and so it's critically important that we get this curriculum right," said Democratic Sen. Hannah-Beth Jackson of Santa Barbara.
State Superintendent Tony Thurmond said on Wednesday that he would recommend changes to better reflect the contributions of Jewish Americans and remove sections that the California Legislative Jewish Caucus found objectionable.
Thurmond said the omission of Jewish contributions was not intentional but that ethnic studies traditionally have focused on African Americans, Latinos, Asian and Pacific Islanders, and indigenous people.
He and some Jewish lawmakers said that there have been other requests to include Hindus, as well as a section on the Armenian genocide. Allen suggested that white Europeans might learn empathy for immigrants today if there were a section on the discrimination that Italian and Irish nationals once faced in the US.
The California Legislative Jewish Caucus cited several examples of alleged anti-Semitism in the proposed curriculum, including:
- Religion is included in sample courses for African American, Native American, Latin American and Arab American studies, but the draft curriculum "effectively erases the American Jewish experience."
- The draft emphasizes "the importance of studying hate crimes, white supremacy, bias, prejudice, and discrimination [but] omits any meaningful discussion of anti-Semitism."
- The glossary includes Islamophobia and other forms of discrimination including racism, sexism, classism, homophobia, transphobia, colonialism and imperialism – but not anti-Semitism.
- It recommends song lyrics asserting that Israelis "use the press," reflecting a stereotype that Jews control the media.
- It contains a "not-so-subtle promotion of the boycott, divestment, and sanctions (BDS) movement" against Israel that many in the Jewish community see as discriminatory.
- It "singles out Israel – the world's only Jewish state – for special critique and condemnation that is both out of context and factually inaccurate."
Roz Rothstein, CEO of StandWithUs, lauded both the results of the campaign to change the curriculum and the fact that the Jewish community mobilized quickly and as one.
"The pro-Israel community and people of goodwill stood together, united against a hateful, biased curriculum and demanded change. Our voices were heard. We look forward to seeing a curriculum that is inclusive, and that we can all feel comfortable with."
The Israeli-American Council also approved the decision by the Board of Education and Gov. Gavin Newsom, but said that they will continue to work to ensure that the new curriculum "will exclude hateful movements such as BDS, as well as any other narratives that demonize Israel and the Jewish people."
IAC co-founder and CEO Shoham Nicolet said in a statement that "to truly advance the goals of the ethnic studies curriculum as described by the California Department of Education, we believe that the narratives and experiences of the American Jewish community and the Israeli-American community, which constitutes a distinct ethnic group that faces discrimination, must be included."
The Jewish Center for Justice also approved the decision.
"The 'Ethnic Studies Model Curriculum' that was both anti-Semitic and which erased our long history of struggle, persecution, and resistance," it said.
"That this curriculum was considered at all during a time when hate crimes against Jews in California, and the United States overall, is on the rise is highly disconcerting. We echo the words and leadership of the California Jewish Legislative Caucus, and urge the State Board of Education to propose a curriculum that includes the experiences and voices of the Jewish community without unfairly singling out Israel or ignoring issues of anti-Semitism."
The AMCHA Initiative said that while they are pleased with the Board of Education's decision, revamping the curriculum needs to address the underlying issues of anti-Israel bias.
"The State Board of Education must establish overall safeguards to ensure that abusive and unconscionable attempts to hijack an educational curriculum in order to indoctrinate students with political, religious and ethnic hate are never attempted again," AMCHA Initiative Director Tammi Rossman-Benjamin said. "If the State Board of Education does not do this, it is imperative that our state's elected leaders introduce legislation to right this wrong and protect our students."
Reprinted with permission from JNS.org.
