West Contra Costa Unified School District Educators for Palestine Promote Violence and a troubling curriculum training for teachers who want to bring Palestine into the classroom

Is the District aware of the extremists in their midst?

The West Contra Costa Unified School District (WCCUSD) Educators for Palestine took to Instagram to share an upcoming event to be held this Saturday (sorry observant Jews who may be interested): a curriculum workshop for K-12 teachers in the Bay Area who want to bring Palestine into their classroom.

The event advert states that teachers will “Plan lessons in community with local educators, including one of the authors of MECA’s Teach Palestine curriculum.”

So let’s have a look at this “community” - starting with the Middle East Children’s Alliance (MECA) and its “Teach Palestine” curriculum.

The Teach Palestine blog describes itself as “a resource by and for K-12 teachers and teacher educators focused on bringing Palestine into our classrooms and schools.” The Teach Palestine blog includes curricula and resources for teachers.

Teaching Gaza Now: A Multinarratives Approach (2023-2024) by Samia Shoman, who co-runs Teach Palestine, includes this:

“It specifically asks students to consider facts and truths to be distinct. The premise is that facts are often layered with perspectives, which underlie a narrative that then is passed along as truth. This truth often does not equate to fact.”

and:

“The events that have unfolded in Gaza since October 7th, 2023 are part of the longer history of Palestine/Israel and should be contextualized as such to give students the best understanding; even if that context is summarized.

Hamas’ actions on October 7th should not be the starting point”

But this is only one curriculum. Others include: “Was she really going to punch that soldier”

PROMPT

“Youth incarceration is a controversial topic in the US and all over the world. Supporters of youth incarceration believe that it is absolutely necessary for kids to learn a lesson and/or keep the public out of danger. Opponents of youth incarceration believe that children need alternatives to incarceration, and prevention before incarceration (such as treating mental health) can be done instead. Specifically in Palestine, we learned about factors driven by the Israeli occupation that result in youth criminalization and incarceration.  

Write an essay addressing a child in the Dheisheh Refugee Camp about your position on youth incarceration in the US and in Palestine. Make a convincing argument, presenting your opinion clearly and supporting them with facts, examples, and relevant personal experience. Compare and contrast the state of youth incarceration in Palestine and in the US. In your essay, you should anticipate and respond to the arguments of people who would disagree with your opinion and offer potential solutions.” 

The introduction to the lessons began like this:

“I looked up “Israel” on Google Maps so students could see the West Bank, Gaza, and how much territory Israel has claimed. Catalina asked, “Can we see the pictures?” in reference to the satellite images. I clicked to enlarge an aerial photo of people swimming in the ocean and sunbathing on a crowded beach, with luxurious high-rise buildings lining the shore.

Zabir asked, confused, “That doesn’t look at all like the video we watched.”

I posed the question to the class: “Why do you think that is?”

Serena responded, “That’s Israel, not Gaza.”

“That’s right” I said, “and there are now walls and checkpoints that Israel has built to keep Palestinians out. The people we see on the beach are likely Israelis, not Palestinians.”

Zabir asked, “So Israelis kicked Palestinians out, and now they can’t even go here?” 

I nodded in response. Zabir mouthed, “What?…” He leaned back in his chair, shook his head, and wore a perplexed look on his face.

This moment in class showed me how ready young people are to learn about what’s happening in Palestine. I had struggled with not feeling informed enough to facilitate conversations and present content in a way that did justice to Palestinian resistance and struggles. However, I realized that this shouldn’t stop me from bringing it to my classroom. I felt a heightened urgency to learn from Palestinians and take action.”

Another lesson : Determined to Stay

“Determined to Stay: A Case Study Examining the Idea of Home—Connecting Silwan, Palestine, to Communities in the United States” is designed as a stand-alone activity to introduce students to issues in East Jerusalem that relate to challenges students may be facing in their own communities—including forced relocation, criminalization of youth, and the struggle to strengthen and protect a culture of resistance.”

Another: Power and Perspective in Palestine - this is for 6th graders.

A week 1 topic for this curriculum is “we have to talk about Turtle Island and Palestine in the same breath”

“One day we compared the titles of two news stories. It was clear just from the titles that one was from an Zionist writer who was coming from a settler, colonialist mindset; and the other was from a Palestinian author who was writing about Palestinian experience.”

For more of “Teach Palestine” curriculums available to teachers and which will be used in the upcoming workshop - see here https://teachpalestine.org/curriculum/

It’s not a surprise that the WCCUSD Educators for Palestine would promote this event. Here are just some of the instagram stories posted by this group in the last 24 hours:

In the following, they share posts from “Woke Kindergarten” (an activist who makes lesson resources for kindergartners and above). These posts celebrate and justify October 7th, delegitmize Israel and Israelis, and encourage us to teach our kids that violence is good.

In this post, they argue that any criticism of those celebrating October 7th and terrorism is illegitimate and are simply false claims of antisemitism.

Here they repost an image “Gaza taught us everything” with the Hamas red triangle. How are we to interpret this?

These are radical activists who are teaching K-12 classes in the WCCUSD at this moment - and who are encouraging other teachers to follow in their path.

Is the WCCUSD aware of the Palestine Educators group? They should be - the group follows their official account on instagram

Does the district support this group? Turn a blind eye? Or share some sort of ideological sympathy born from their commitment to “anti-racism”

Is it really a coincidence that were “anti-racist” policies are adopted, antisemitism is soon to follow?

Does the West Contra County Education Fund know that the Educators for Palestine group follows their instagram and likes their page - particularly those reporting grants to teachers? Are these teachers recipients? These are things I’m sure parents in the school district would be interested to know.