Leaders with Berkeley Unified School District denied the schools have become hotbeds of antisemitism in recent months when testifying before House Republicans this week.
Berkeley Unified School District Superintendent Enikia Ford Morthel told House Republicans this week that she received nine formal complaints of antisemitism while denying that the school district has become a hotbed for such activity.
“Antisemitism is not pervasive in Berkeley Unified School District,” she told the House Education & the Workforce subcommittee. “Our babies sometimes say hurtful things. We are mindful that all kids make mistakes. We know that our staff are not immune to missteps either, and we don’t ignore them when they occur.”
As noted by the San Francisco Chronicle, the Berkeley district was one of the first “K-12 school districts to see a civil rights complaint filed against it — submitted by the Louis D. Brandeis Center for Human Rights Under Law and the Anti-Defamation League.”
“Berkeley schools are facing allegations that administrators ignored ‘severe and persistent’ harassment of Jewish students, according to a complaint filed with the Education Department’s Office for Civil Rights,” noted the outlet. “The complaint alleges a wide variety of incidents, including that one student was told, ‘You have a big nose because you are a stupid Jew’ and ‘I don’t like your people.’
Enikia Ford Morthel, superintendent of the Berkeley Unified School District, speaks during a hearing with subcommittee members of the House Education and the Workforce Committee in the Rayburn House Office Building on May 08, 2024 in Washington, DC. ( Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)
In another allegation, students chanted “Kill the Jews” and “KKK” during a pro-Palestinian walkout. Others were heard chanting “from the river to the sea, Palestine will be free,” which Montel agreed to be antisemitic with certain caveats.
“It does have different meanings to different members of our community,” she said.
Rep. Barbara Lee, D-Oakland, referred to the hearing as Republican grandstanding.
“The Republican majority continues to use their committee business time to get sound bites to post to their social media pages and talk about on Fox News. They have no real interest in solving the issue at hand, which is bigotry in schools,” Lee told the SF Chronicle. “I would welcome this new ‘enthusiasm’ from our Republicans colleagues to address hate everywhere, but I am not inclined to believe they are acting in good faith.”
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