BOE President Karla Silvestre testifies to Congress

[Anonymous]

Congressional Republicans accused school districts of failing to combat anti-semitism.


https://www.nytimes.com/live/2024/05/08/us/antisemitism-house-hearing-education

[Anonymous]

Full session is here:

[Anonymous]

Yeah, she and the other public school leaders are doing a really good job of putting those ridiculous Republicans in their place. I think the NY guy basically shut Elise up. Good on 'em.

The concern trolling by Republicans about antisemitism is revolting. MAGA is inherently antisemitic.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Yeah, she and the other public school leaders are doing a really good job of putting those ridiculous Republicans in their place. I think the NY guy basically shut Elise up. Good on 'em.

The concern trolling by Republicans about antisemitism is revolting. MAGA is inherently antisemitic.

+1

And my orthodox Jew peeps that support that are a cult.

[Anonymous]

The NYC superintendent did a great job.
The house republicans are completely ridiculous with their faux concern.

[Anonymous]

I think she (and her public school colleagues) did well. These "hearings" are always designed to produce soundbites rather than to uncover deeper truths, and they all did a great job of answering the questions with dignity, brevity, and respect for their role in making sure every child in MCPS feels welcome.

[Anonymous]

Congratulations to this person. She and the others from NY and CA stood their ground when the Ivy Presidents folded like cheap tents.

Enough with the Islamophobic and anti-Arab bullies who side with mass murderers.

35000 Palestinian deaths and counting.
More to come with the Rafah offensive.
This is what angers normal, decent human beings.
Until it stops, there will be problems in every country.

If the US breaks with Israel on ths Gaza issue, then there won't be so many protests and antisemitic harassment.

[Anonymous]

Antisemitism in MCPS is real. The oppressor/oppressed narrative they cultivate is creating a culture of hate against Jews. Jews are not the "oppressors." Jews are indigenous to the land of Israel. Gaza was given to the Palestinians for peace - Look how that turned out. Rockets constantly being launched from Gaza into Israel from hospitals. People need to think critically. The school system is not producing students who think. They also clearly need to teach history better.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Antisemitism in MCPS is real. The oppressor/oppressed narrative they cultivate is creating a culture of hate against Jews. Jews are not the "oppressors." Jews are indigenous to the land of Israel. Gaza was given to the Palestinians for peace - Look how that turned out. Rockets constantly being launched from Gaza into Israel from hospitals. People need to think critically. The school system is not producing students who think. They also clearly need to teach history better.

Of course it is real, but so are a lot of other "-isms" that are not getting Congressional hearings right now.

It's also interesting that you pivot here immediately to the creation of the State of Israel in a conversation about the experience of American Jewish k-12 students. I'm not sure this needs to be explained, but American Jews are not responsible for the actions of the Israeli government, and it's offensive that you think they should be.

Moreover, the vast majority of those kids aren't learning about the creation of Israel at all in school, let alone from some 9th dimensional "settler colonialism" lens. Most of their time is spent on US History in the earlier grades, and then world history covering the entire history of civilization. The partition of Palestine is likely to only get a day if that, and then primarily through the lens of the British Empire.

To the extent that MCPS high schoolers are learning about current events, they are maybe overhearing/reading traditional news reporting, but they are also watching TikToks and other first-hand reporting that manages to make its way out of Gaza. Nothing to do with MCPS.

At any rate, I'm glad that Congressional Republicans are taking antisemitism seriously. Hopefully they'll also bring in the Proud Boys, and the folks blaming Holocaust survivor George Soros for the student protests.

[Anonymous]

Antisemitism is real. The House Republicans' purported concern about antisemitism is not real.

[Anonymous]

The concern trolling by Republicans about antisemitism is revolting.

+1

So phony and pathetic.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Antisemitism in MCPS is real. The oppressor/oppressed narrative they cultivate is creating a culture of hate against Jews. Jews are not the "oppressors." Jews are indigenous to the land of Israel. Gaza was given to the Palestinians for peace - Look how that turned out. Rockets constantly being launched from Gaza into Israel from hospitals. People need to think critically. The school system is not producing students who think. They also clearly need to teach history better.

Of course it is real, but so are a lot of other "-isms" that are not getting Congressional hearings right now.

It's also interesting that you pivot here immediately to the creation of the State of Israel in a conversation about the experience of American Jewish k-12 students. I'm not sure this needs to be explained, but American Jews are not responsible for the actions of the Israeli government, and it's offensive that you think they should be.

Moreover, the vast majority of those kids aren't learning about the creation of Israel at all in school, let alone from some 9th dimensional "settler colonialism" lens. Most of their time is spent on US History in the earlier grades, and then world history covering the entire history of civilization. The partition of Palestine is likely to only get a day if that, and then primarily through the lens of the British Empire.

To the extent that MCPS high schoolers are learning about current events, they are maybe overhearing/reading traditional news reporting, but they are also watching TikToks and other first-hand reporting that manages to make its way out of Gaza. Nothing to do with MCPS.

At any rate, I'm glad that Congressional Republicans are taking antisemitism seriously. Hopefully they'll also bring in the Proud Boys, and the folks blaming Holocaust survivor George Soros for the student protests.

Thank you for your post.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Antisemitism in MCPS is real. The oppressor/oppressed narrative they cultivate is creating a culture of hate against Jews. Jews are not the "oppressors." Jews are indigenous to the land of Israel. Gaza was given to the Palestinians for peace - Look how that turned out. Rockets constantly being launched from Gaza into Israel from hospitals. People need to think critically. The school system is not producing students who think. They also clearly need to teach history better.

Antisemitism is real the world around as well as every other -ism. Native Americans are indigenous to what is the U.S. Does that mean everyone currently living here has to move to give it back to them?

No one in MCPS or in these university administration is in support of hating Jewish persons. But people absolutely get to question and protest the government/ state of Israel the same way they get to question the US.

“Beware that, when fighting monsters, you yourself do not become a monster.”

[Anonymous]

I think the New York Times article said that she avoided any pitfalls by barely speaking.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I think the New York Times article said that she avoided any pitfalls by barely speaking.

That's fine. Good for her.