cawacko
Well-known member
Maybe it's beating a dead horse at this point to keep bringing all this up but it's so fascinating. My first thought is with all the challenges/problems Oakland schools have this is what they want to focus on, that Israel shouldn't exist? This is really eye opening.
Oakland teachers union sparks outrage with social media posts on Israel-Hamas conflict
Top leaders of the Oakland teachers union were facing significant backlash and calls for resignations this week after they posted a declaration associating Israel with genocide and apartheid while urging district educators to teach a pro-Palestinian curriculum.
Outraged teachers, parents and elected officials criticized the Instagram post put up on Friday and since deleted, as well as an amended statement still available on Facebook that continues to espouse the position that “the Israeli government created an apartheid state and the Israeli government leaders have espoused genocidal rhetoric and policies against the people of Palestine.”
The union leaders also voiced opposition to the existence of Israel and support for a free Palestine.
Their statements drew the Oakland school community into the divisive debate over the fate of Palestinians and the war between Israel and Hamas militants who launched a surprise and deadly attack on Israeli communities on Oct. 7, resulting in retaliatory strikes on Gaza and the death of thousands of civilians across both sides of the conflict.
The anti-Israel position left many Jewish families afraid, especially given the growing number of antisemitic incidents across the country and in their own backyard, said Megan Bacigalupi, cofounder of California Parent Power and an Oakland Unified parent who is Jewish.
“It’s a very scary time to be Jewish in Oakland and in America,” she said, adding there was recently antisemitic and anti-Israel graffiti around Lake Merritt. “I talked to teachers who were crying Friday night.”
On Tuesday, FBI director Christopher Wray said antisemitism is near “historic levels” across the country.
Bacigalupi said she and other families and staff were getting together “to figure out what is the next step here.”
Union officials did not respond to requests for comment Tuesday, but provided a statement to the media after their initial Instagram post, saying it did not accurately reflect a resolution passed by the group’s executive board and that the complete position was available on Facebook.
The labor group’s leaders had support for their position among Oakland school board members.
Two days before the union’s initial social media post, the Oakland school board commented on the conflict, specifically in response to several students during an Oct. 25 meeting calling for district-sponsored support of Palestinians.
“We want to make sure Palestinians have the liberation they so rightfully deserve in their own land,” said board member Valarie Bachelor, adding it was time to take immediate action to “call out apartheid, to call out this genocide.”
“I want to make sure we stand on our progressive organizing history and we don’t just sit on it,” she said. “We stand on it and we say we need to do more and we need to do this now.”
She said she would sponsor a resolution in support of Palestinians.
The union’s initial post didn’t mention the Hamas attack or the loss of life among Israelis and Palestinians, stating instead that the labor group condemns “the genocidal and apartheid state of Israel.”
The amended statement acknowledged the loss of life, but maintained opposition to Israel.
The union’s 3,000 members didn’t see the controversial declarations prior to the social media postings, even though they were attributed to the Oakland Education Association, said Chabot Elementary teacher Sara Holderfield, who is also a union representative at the school.
Holderfield co-authored a letter to the Chabot community this week denouncing the leadership’s anti-Israel statement, saying many teachers at the school were “horrified” that it was released in their names.
“OEA essentially called for the dissolution of the Israeli state, using inflammatory rhetoric that has caused a deep sense of fear and alienation among our Jewish students, teachers, and families,” the letter said. “As a result of OEA’s statement, we now have families who are afraid to send their children to school and teachers at our site who want to leave their jobs.”
Holderfield, who expressed her continued support for the labor organization, was among other parents and teachers calling for the resignation of the union officials responsible for the statements.
“This was not a small mistake,” she said. “This was egregious.”
She authored a second letter to union leaders Monday expressing her personal frustration.
“As a union, we should be focused on keeping our students and staff safe and providing an excellent education for all students. Full stop,” she wrote. “We have no business taking a stand on complex political issues that touch the lives of so many in our community. Your willingness to take a stand on this issue shows your lack of commitment to serve children and focus on education.”
This was the second controversy hitting the Oakland teachers union within the past week, following a Chronicle report that the labor group owes the district an estimated $500,000 in reimbursement for salaries and benefits of union officials.
Oakland Unified leadership also weighed in, saying the district “disavows the various polarizing statements on the conflict issued by organizations in the OUSD community.”
“Oakland Unified School District (OUSD) continues to call for immediate peace in the Gaza and Israel conflict, and strongly opposes anti-Semitism, Islamophobia, and racism in all of their forms,” according to the district statement.
Parent Ben Siegel said the union’s messaging “hurt a lot; it made me really sad,” adding he is Jewish and his wife is Mexican American from Texas.
The union statement amplified fear of antisemitism within his family, Siegel said.
Their son likes to wear baseball hats representing both sides of his background, but is too scared to wear an Israeli Classic baseball cap to school, Siegel said.
“My son can’t even wear a hat that shows he’s proudly Jewish,” he said. “It’s really sad and scary to me.”
School board member Sam Davis said Tuesday that as a pro-Palestinian Jew, he is horrified by the bombing of Gaza, but said Israel and Palestine is a complicated issue.
The board and the district shouldn’t be trying to craft foreign policy, he said, but rather creating safe spaces for students, many of whom have complicated backgrounds.
“OEA has a history of catering to certain segments of their membership without thinking of the broader context,” Davis said. “They are a democratic organization and they should go through a process before recommending curriculum.”
https://www.sfchronicle.com/eastbay...rs-union-provokes-outrage-israel-18459622.php
Oakland teachers union sparks outrage with social media posts on Israel-Hamas conflict
Top leaders of the Oakland teachers union were facing significant backlash and calls for resignations this week after they posted a declaration associating Israel with genocide and apartheid while urging district educators to teach a pro-Palestinian curriculum.
Outraged teachers, parents and elected officials criticized the Instagram post put up on Friday and since deleted, as well as an amended statement still available on Facebook that continues to espouse the position that “the Israeli government created an apartheid state and the Israeli government leaders have espoused genocidal rhetoric and policies against the people of Palestine.”
The union leaders also voiced opposition to the existence of Israel and support for a free Palestine.
Their statements drew the Oakland school community into the divisive debate over the fate of Palestinians and the war between Israel and Hamas militants who launched a surprise and deadly attack on Israeli communities on Oct. 7, resulting in retaliatory strikes on Gaza and the death of thousands of civilians across both sides of the conflict.
The anti-Israel position left many Jewish families afraid, especially given the growing number of antisemitic incidents across the country and in their own backyard, said Megan Bacigalupi, cofounder of California Parent Power and an Oakland Unified parent who is Jewish.
“It’s a very scary time to be Jewish in Oakland and in America,” she said, adding there was recently antisemitic and anti-Israel graffiti around Lake Merritt. “I talked to teachers who were crying Friday night.”
On Tuesday, FBI director Christopher Wray said antisemitism is near “historic levels” across the country.
Bacigalupi said she and other families and staff were getting together “to figure out what is the next step here.”
Union officials did not respond to requests for comment Tuesday, but provided a statement to the media after their initial Instagram post, saying it did not accurately reflect a resolution passed by the group’s executive board and that the complete position was available on Facebook.
The labor group’s leaders had support for their position among Oakland school board members.
Two days before the union’s initial social media post, the Oakland school board commented on the conflict, specifically in response to several students during an Oct. 25 meeting calling for district-sponsored support of Palestinians.
“We want to make sure Palestinians have the liberation they so rightfully deserve in their own land,” said board member Valarie Bachelor, adding it was time to take immediate action to “call out apartheid, to call out this genocide.”
“I want to make sure we stand on our progressive organizing history and we don’t just sit on it,” she said. “We stand on it and we say we need to do more and we need to do this now.”
She said she would sponsor a resolution in support of Palestinians.
The union’s initial post didn’t mention the Hamas attack or the loss of life among Israelis and Palestinians, stating instead that the labor group condemns “the genocidal and apartheid state of Israel.”
The amended statement acknowledged the loss of life, but maintained opposition to Israel.
The union’s 3,000 members didn’t see the controversial declarations prior to the social media postings, even though they were attributed to the Oakland Education Association, said Chabot Elementary teacher Sara Holderfield, who is also a union representative at the school.
Holderfield co-authored a letter to the Chabot community this week denouncing the leadership’s anti-Israel statement, saying many teachers at the school were “horrified” that it was released in their names.
“OEA essentially called for the dissolution of the Israeli state, using inflammatory rhetoric that has caused a deep sense of fear and alienation among our Jewish students, teachers, and families,” the letter said. “As a result of OEA’s statement, we now have families who are afraid to send their children to school and teachers at our site who want to leave their jobs.”
Holderfield, who expressed her continued support for the labor organization, was among other parents and teachers calling for the resignation of the union officials responsible for the statements.
“This was not a small mistake,” she said. “This was egregious.”
She authored a second letter to union leaders Monday expressing her personal frustration.
“As a union, we should be focused on keeping our students and staff safe and providing an excellent education for all students. Full stop,” she wrote. “We have no business taking a stand on complex political issues that touch the lives of so many in our community. Your willingness to take a stand on this issue shows your lack of commitment to serve children and focus on education.”
This was the second controversy hitting the Oakland teachers union within the past week, following a Chronicle report that the labor group owes the district an estimated $500,000 in reimbursement for salaries and benefits of union officials.
Oakland Unified leadership also weighed in, saying the district “disavows the various polarizing statements on the conflict issued by organizations in the OUSD community.”
“Oakland Unified School District (OUSD) continues to call for immediate peace in the Gaza and Israel conflict, and strongly opposes anti-Semitism, Islamophobia, and racism in all of their forms,” according to the district statement.
Parent Ben Siegel said the union’s messaging “hurt a lot; it made me really sad,” adding he is Jewish and his wife is Mexican American from Texas.
The union statement amplified fear of antisemitism within his family, Siegel said.
Their son likes to wear baseball hats representing both sides of his background, but is too scared to wear an Israeli Classic baseball cap to school, Siegel said.
“My son can’t even wear a hat that shows he’s proudly Jewish,” he said. “It’s really sad and scary to me.”
School board member Sam Davis said Tuesday that as a pro-Palestinian Jew, he is horrified by the bombing of Gaza, but said Israel and Palestine is a complicated issue.
The board and the district shouldn’t be trying to craft foreign policy, he said, but rather creating safe spaces for students, many of whom have complicated backgrounds.
“OEA has a history of catering to certain segments of their membership without thinking of the broader context,” Davis said. “They are a democratic organization and they should go through a process before recommending curriculum.”
https://www.sfchronicle.com/eastbay...rs-union-provokes-outrage-israel-18459622.php
