As we usher in a new presidential administration this January, many educators may be considering the future of public education. There are renewed conversations about the relevance of the U.S. Department of Education and the necessity of a federal role in education. I recently completed a six-month appointment with the department serving as an adviser in the office of the secretary, where I had a front row seat to federal policymaking and enforcement actions taken to counter hate, bias, and discrimination.
This experience showcased the importance of federal leadership as a tool to shape national discourse and improve our education system. I was a part of the team working to advance access and excellence for all students in our nation’s schools.
Last month, the Education Department detailed 25 key actions it had taken to counter hate, bias, and discrimination targeting Muslims, Arabs, and Sikhs. These actions were part of the first National Strategy to Counter Islamophobia and Anti-Arab Hate.
I knew from my own research that Muslim, Arab, and Sikh students face complex challenges in school. Students themselves have shared with me that they encounter identity-based bullying, they lack support for religious accommodations, and their teachers and peers remain largely uninformed about these inequities as well as their communities’ unique American heritages.
The national strategy frames these realities as Islamophobia, defined as hatred, discrimination, or bias directed at Muslims or those perceived to be Muslim. The strategy also addresses anti-Arab hate as a unique experience that targets Arabs and cannot be conflated with hate toward Muslims and Sikhs. The strategy affirms, “Muslim and Arab students, faculty, and staff, have been subject to violence, discrimination, hate, harassment, bullying, and online targeting, in both pre-K-12 schools and higher education.”
To be sure, the incoming presidential administration may not implement the national strategy. And the department may not continue to hold a national leadership role in public education. But I know that our nation’s teachers, leaders, and school staff will continue to teach and lead students through challenging times. Islamophobia and anti-Arab hate are at all-time highs, and students have faced some of their most difficult challenges this past year just existing in their own religious and cultural identities.
Although the federal government wrote the strategy, it will be the work of communities across the nation to counter Islamophobia and anti-Arab hate on behalf of all of us. Below, I outline what the Education Department calls for educators to do to counter Islamophobia and anti-Arab hate.
1. Increase awareness of hate and broaden recognition of heritages.
Educators are called on to speak out against Islamophobia and all forms of hate that target ethnic and religious communities. More than a third of Muslim American students surveyed reported being bullied at school because of their religion in the previous month. Seventy-seven percent of Sikh students who wore a religious head covering reported at least one bullying experience. Initial qualitative data show that young Arab Americans also report high rates of bullying because of religious and cultural backgrounds.
When domestic or international events incite stereotyping, school leaders need to call out hate to prevent discrimination or violence in their schools. Educators are encouraged to work throughout the year with communities and local centers to host discussions and programs about the current and historical contributions of local Muslims and Arabs.
The Education Department offers technical assistance to help schools improve awareness of different religious cultures and practices and provides suggestions on how to acknowledge religious and cultural heritage months, including Arab American and Sikh American Heritage months.
2. Improve safety and security for Muslims and Arabs.
The national strategy honors the memory of 6-year-old Wadee Alfayoumi, a Palestinian American boy, whose brutal killing just days after Oct. 7, 2023, spread horror and fear across the nation. Wadee’s death is an urgent reminder that hate threatens the safety and security of our youngest Americans.
Protecting the safety and security of Muslim and Arab students is an essential function of school leaders. The Education Department has technical-assistance opportunities for educators to promote school safety to prevent and address the effects of bullying, violence, and hatred on students and communities. There are also supports available to establish schoolwide mental health practices and positive school climates for all students, including Muslims and Arabs.
School leaders are called to craft policies to keep students safe from doxing and assist students who feel threatened by cyberbullying and online harassment.
3. Tackle discrimination and accommodate religious practices.
Educators can prevent workplace discrimination that targets Muslims, Arabs, and Sikhs by highlighting their employee rights related to disparate treatment, segregation, harassment, religious accommodations, and retaliation. School leaders can educate and build awareness about the experiences of Muslim, Arab, and Sikh employees and ensure that all staff members understand policies and procedures to address issues or complaints of bias and discrimination.
Schools have a legal duty to accommodate sincerely held religious beliefs or practices. Students continue to report that they have had their religious clothing forcibly removed, and those who groom themselves consistent with their faith or who wear articles of faith like hijabs, turbans, and patkas have been denied opportunities to participate in activities including sports.
Following the department’s May 2023 updated guidance on religious expression in schools, the agency recently released a new resource highlighting best practices for religious accommodations in P-12 schools.
School leaders are encouraged to identify accessible, nondenominational spaces that can be used by students of all religious and nonreligious backgrounds for prayer and reflection. Staff should have access to appropriate religious literacy training to effectively meet the needs of students. This will enable leaders to create religiously inclusive school calendars, absence policies during religious holidays, and meal options.
Like so many other national challenges, Islamophobia and anti-Arab hate did not begin in the schools nor is it limited to the schools. The national strategy is written for a whole-of-society approach that is inclusive of law enforcement, health care, industry, nonprofits, international allies, and private citizens to address hate, bias, and discrimination targeting Muslims, Arabs, and Sikhs. The Education Department is just one federal agency among many that contributed key actions to the development of this historic framework.
Let’s come together through this historic opportunity to eliminate hate, bias, and discrimination for all students.
