AJC New England Report: Massachusetts Teachers Association Leaders Have Engaged Members to Introduce Anti Israel Content In K 12 Classrooms

Leaders and activists within the Massachusetts Teachers Association (MTA) have waged an aggressive campaign that has encouraged K-12 teachers to become pro-Palestinian activists and bring anti-Israel propaganda into their classrooms, according to a report from American Jewish Committee (AJC) New England.

Since the October 7, 2023, Hamas massacre in Israel, the MTA has undertaken a series of initiatives that abandoned even a pretense of objectivity and attacked closely held Jewish beliefs and values, the report said. The union has introduced one-sided curriculum resources, passed organizational resolutions that demonize Israel and its supporters, and promoted educational and training programs that advanced extreme political views about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. To advance these views, the MTA has supported the omission of critical historic and political context and presented factually inaccurate information.

"This campaign risks politicizing K-12 classrooms across Massachusetts. Our schools should be places for education, not indoctrination," said AJC New England Director Rob Leikind. "The MTA's actions over the last year raise questions about its commitment to this ideal. They also are contributing to an increasingly toxic environment for Jewish students and families."

The MTA initiatives documented in the AJC report include:

• Promoting multipleone-sidedanti-Israel resolutions, including one that accused Israel of genocide while failing to mention Hamas' murderous October 7 attack and the hundreds taken hostage, and another that characterized an internationally recognized definition of antisemitism as a conspiracy to "manufacture hysteria and fear."
• Sponsoring programming, including a webinar that purported to address "anti-Palestinian racism." In fact, it was dedicated to attacking the legitimacy of the world's only Jewish state.
• Curating and promoting on its website anti-Israel educational resources that it encourages members to bring back to their schools, and tasking the MTA's Training and Professional Learning Division to develop curriculum resources for learning about "Israel and Occupied Palestine." The director of that division made social media posts celebrating Hamas' October 7 massacre, including one now-deleted post, just two days after the attack.

The common feature of these and other MTA initiatives has been the determination to advance partisan, political views, while failing to even recognize the possibility of other points of view, according to the report. People across the Jewish community have taken notice and are increasingly alarmed by the MTA's apparent effort to shape the views of its more than 117,000 members and, ultimately, the students they serve in public schools.

Hate crimes against Jews nationwide increased 63% in 2023 compared to the year before, according to the FBI. Despite Jews accounting for just 2.4% of the U.S. population, they are the victims of 68% of all religiously motivated hate crimes. Synagogues have been compelled to lock their doors and hire security guards to protect congregants. And concerns about antisemitism in K-12 schools are prompting new initiatives to help Jewish students and teachers cope.

"The MTA's campaign elevates these concerns and will inevitably prompt questions for the broader public about what is happening in their children's classrooms. Efforts to politicize what is taught, whatever the topic, can only fuel distrust and sow conflict," Leikind said. "AJC New England calls on the MTA to bring an end to their campaign to promote a one-sided political position that demonizes Israel and its supporters. Students should be taught how to think, not what to think."

To learn more, go to AJC.org/PoliticizingMAClassrooms.

AJC New England connects our community with American Jewish Committee's global advocacy work to enhance the well-being of the Jewish people and Israel. Our access to diplomats, elected officials, and interfaith leaders at the local level advances AJC's broader priorities: combating antisemitism, promoting Israel's place in the world, and countering the spread of radicalism and extremism. Learn more at AJC.org/NewEngland .