The nation’s largest teachers union on July 18 rejected a proposed boycott of the Anti-Defamation League, in a move indicative of the rising challenge for teachers in addressing both increasing U.S. antisemitism in the United States and international division over the war in Gaza.
The nonprofit ADL provides widely used free K-12 programs and curricular materials, including No Place for Hate, a school program which is used in more than 2,000 schools nationwide, according to the ADL.
NEA delegates at the union’s Representative Assembly on July 5 voted to approve a new business item recommending that the union no longer use, endorse, or publicize ADL materials or professional development.
Proposed boycotts of this nature get especially close vetting from the union’s governing bodies, and ultimately the NEA’s executive committee chose to nix the proposal.
In a statement, NEA President Becky Pringle said the union’s executive committee consulted with the union’s board of directors, state leaders, civil rights leaders including those of Jewish-American and Arab-American communities, and leaders from the ADL before deciding against the boycott.
“After consideration, it was determined that this proposal would not further NEA’s commitment to academic freedom, our membership, or our goals,” Pringle said. “We know antisemitism and anti-Arab bigotry are very real and urgent problems in this country and around the world. They are insidious forms of hate, which is why NEA and our members actively work to fight them in our classrooms, on our campuses, and in our communities.”
War in Gaza forces teachers to grapple with divisive political issue
The union received sharp criticism last week from the ADL and conservative groups, including Republican lawmakers who have proposed revoking the union’s federal charter.
The ongoing war in Gaza has forced K-12 teachers to grapple with their own political beliefs while managing contentious debates in their classrooms, as well as address increasingly common antisemitic and anti-Islamic incidents in schools.
In proposing the boycott, Judy Greenspan, a substitute teacher in the Oakland, Calif. affiliate and a member of the pro-Palestinian Jewish Voice for Peace, argued that the ADL’s definition of antisemitism as encompassing political critiques of Israel “has made it harder for Jewish groups to track and fight real instances of antisemitism.”
In a debate that spanned more than 20 minutes, other Jewish NEA members both critiqued and defended the organization.
New Jersey Education Association retired member Michael Johnson argued against the boycott: “While the ADL primarily focuses on combatting antisemitism, its mission and initiatives demonstrate a broader commitment to securing justice and fair treatment for all people and fighting various forms of bigotry,” he said.
Just before the boycott vote, delegates at the assembly had also recommended that the union’s Jewish affairs caucus work with the executive committee to use a new antisemitism toolkit to help train educators to identify and respond to anti-Jewish hate crimes.
Pringle also said the union would use a “diverse and knowledgeable group of NEA practitioners” to review any materials the union uses or curriculum and tools to combat antisemitism.
“As educators, we remain steadfast in our commitment to ensuring our schools and campuses are safe and welcoming for all students, regardless of their religion, ethnicity, or identity with no exceptions,” she said. “That is fundamental to who we are as educators and the core of who we are as a union.”
