Jewish groups in Massachusetts are raising concerns about a bill being proposed by state lawmakers that would facilitate the teaching of ethnic studies in schools.

Follow Israel Hayom on Facebook and Twitter

The legislation, known as S.365 "An Act relative to anti-racism, equity and justice in education" has been proposed by State Sen. Jason Lewis (5th Middlesex District). The bill, citing the Jan. 6 "insurrection" and the "imminent danger" posed by "disinformation and white supremacy," says that it would be in the best interest of Massachusetts students "that education in dismantling racism be taught to all students."

It calls for the establishment of a fund and a "Commission for Anti-Racism and Equity in Education," which would "develop curriculum materials with a social-justice perspective of dismantling racism" and "ensure that ethnic studies, racial justice, decolonizing history and unlearning racism are taught at all grade levels."

The bill was introduced earlier this year and has been referred to the committee on education. In September, a virtual hearing was held where Jewish groups submitted testimony raising concerns over the language.

Robert Leikind, director of the American Jewish Committee's New England regional office, wrote that while they support efforts to educate students on racial justice, the "terms used are undefined and vague, leaving the proposed commission broad discretion to interpret their meaning and shape policy accordingly."

Similarly, in a letter to Lewis and other lawmakers, the Jewish Community Relations Council of Greater Boston expressed concern over the legislation.

In particular, it noted issues related to the oversight of the "commission (in the bills' current form, the commission has no members from the legislature or the administration, for example), transparency, definitions of vague terms in the commission's enumerated goals and the fiscal power of the commission to disburse funds without requiring legislative or administrative oversight."

The JCRC said that it looks forward to future opportunities to work with lawmakers to have more in-depth conversations on the bill and its current language.

'Part of a political movement'

Andrea Levin, executive director of the Committee for Accuracy in Middle East Reporting and Analysis (CAMERA), which is based in Boston, told Jewish News Syndicate that the ethnic-studies curriculum as it stands now is infested with antisemitism.

"There is now overwhelming evidence that critical ethnic studies and the 'anti-racist' pedagogy are not genuinely concerned with combating the evil of bigotry and prejudice, but are instead part of a political movement that's shot through with antisemitism and rank anti-Zionist propaganda. To mandate this pernicious ideology in public schools is a violation of public trust, brainwashes children of all backgrounds and will ultimately put a target on the backs of every Jewish child," she said.

The concern over the bill comes as California is close to enacting mandatory ethnic-studies curriculum as a high school graduation requirement.

The debate over ethnic studies in California has been ongoing for several years. The first draft of the state-approved Ethnic Studies Model Curriculum (ESMC) was criticized by pro-Israel groups and others for promoting the BDS movement against Israel and not including lessons about antisemitism.

While a revised version did address some issues, groups fear that the law mandating ethnic studies, known as AB 101, could lead to some school districts using portions of the first draft.

As such, a number of pro-Israel groups and individuals had been pressuring California Gov. Gavin Newsom to veto the bill. However, Newsom signed the bill into law on Oct. 8.

Charles Jacobs, president of Americans for Peace and Tolerance, told JNS that ethnic studies and racial-justice curricula as now constructed are "poisonous to American society, as they promote tribalism and racism."

Subscribe to Israel Hayom's daily newsletter and never miss our top stories!

"They also follow the woke-ist formula that casts Jews as privileged white-adjacents whose very accomplishments and success become the very proof points that we are 'exploiters and oppressors' here and illegitimate rulers over 'people of color' in Israel," he said.

He also cast doubt on whether the established Jewish community can have an impact on improving the curriculum, such as in the case of California, where major concerns still linger. "Jewish efforts to 'improve' these curricula will likely backfire because any 'improved versions' will make the entire effort seem kosher, when it is not. And in any case, it will be hard or impossible to monitor radical-minded teachers who will use the cover of an approved 'racial-justice' curriculum to treat Israel and Jews here as they wish," he said.

Jacobs concluded by saying that "the Jewish community's mainstream leadership, already paralyzed by its embrace of the very minority groups which are openly hostile to our interests, will likely be able to 'make improvements' and brag about it, but they will have only put lipstick on the pig."

Reprinted with permission from JNS.org.

The post Jewish groups alarmed by ethnic-studies bill in Massachusetts appeared first on www.israelhayom.com.

The University of Bristol in the United Kingdom announced the firing of a professor who has a history of anti-Jewish and anti-Israel statements, and who has called Jewish students the "enemy"who must be "targeted."

Follow Israel Hayom on Facebook and Twitter

"After careful deliberation, a disciplinary hearing found that Professor [David] Miller did not meet the standards of behavior we expect from our staff, and the university has concluded that Professor Miller's employment should be terminated with immediate effect," the school said in a statement late last week.

The announcement came a month after a lawsuit filed by lawyers working on behalf of the Campaign Against Antisemitism (CAA) and Jewish students at the university. The suit claimed that Miller, a professor of political sociology who has a long history of anti-Zionist statements, violated the country's equity laws and that his comments in a February Zoom session amounted to the harassment of Jewish students.

During that webinar, he claimed that Israelis were attempting to rule the world and that a fundamental part of Zionism was to "encourage Islamophobia and anti-Arab racism."

According to the CAA, Miller also asserted that supporters of Zionism, including members of the Jewish Student Union at Bristol University, are "the enemy of world peace" who "must be directly targeted."

"Following the launch of our lawsuit, it was clear to the university that it would be held to account in court and had to act to protect Jewish students in accordance with the law," said Gideon Falter, chief executive of CAA. "Universities across the country should be warned that we will do whatever it takes to defend Jewish students from racists on campus by upholding their rights in court where necessary."

CAA officials told Jewish News Syndicate that this was an "important test case, and we will review what impact this precedent may have. We certainly believe that this case should put other universities on notice."

The Union of Jewish Students put out a statement on Oct. 1 saying the university's announcement concludes months and years of tireless campaigns and actions by students to try and get the university and authorities to listen … ."

The organization said it has been two years since the Jewish community first "raised their heads and their voices in protest at the harassment, targeting and vicious diatribe shared by Professor Miller with his students" and "seven months since complaints were made about his statements targeting the Jewish society, its president and UJS."

Subscribe to Israel Hayom's daily newsletter and never miss our top stories!

Also responding to Miller's termination was the Community Security Trust (CST), which is charged with protecting the Jewish community throughout the United Kingdom.

"The Union of Jewish Students, CST and Bristol Jewish Society have repeatedly complained about Miller's comments over the past two-and-a-half years, and it has taken far too long to reach this point, but we are relieved that Bristol has finally taken this necessary step," it said in a statement. "David Miller's comments alleging that Jewish students are agents of a foreign power and an enemy seeking to subvert democracy were dangerous, untrue and totally incompatible with his position of authority at the university. They were part of a wider conspiracist mindset that should have no place in academia."

According to the university, Miller can appeal the decision.

Reprinted with permission from JNS.org.

The post University of Bristol fires professor who took aim at Jewish students, Israel appeared first on www.israelhayom.com.

The five teens who were arrested are students at a yeshiva in Rechelim, close to where the attack took place, on a road near the community. The attack, investigators say, targeted a Palestinian car, causing it to veer off the road and crash. Al-Rawbi, from the Arab village of Badi and a mother of eight, suffered a fatal head injury. Her husband, Aykube, survived.

It is unclear if all five teens are suspected of being the direct perpetrators of the attack. According to the Shin Bet security agency, the breakthrough in the investigation was made possible in part by intelligence gathered close the scene of the attack. The detective work showed that a day after the attack, during the Jewish Sabbath, a group of settler youth traveled from the community of Yitzhar to Rechelim, where they were briefed on the tactics needed for countering Shin Bet interrogations.

The Shin Bet further said that the evidence collected showed "that the arrested had anti-Zionist and extremist views" that included a video in which some of them burn an Israeli flag. One of the arrested youths had also written "death to the Zionists" and drew a swastika on an Israeli flag.

Al-Rawbi's widower, Aykube, said that he knew "all along" that Jews were behind the attack. "If this was the other way around, the suspects would have been arrested a long time ago. Too bad it took so much time, and I hope justice will be served, not just for us but for many others so that no one else suffers like us. But this will not bring back my wife, nor will it bring back my children's mother."

Attorney and right-wing activist Itamar Ben-Gvir, who represents the teens, said they deny any involvement in the attack. Ben-Gvir said the case "is falling apart" because interrogators are using questionable tactics, including "spitting, shouting, cursing and borderline sexual harassment."

The post 'Anti-Zionist' Jewish teens allegedly behind killing of Palestinian woman appeared first on www.israelhayom.com.