Thousands Sign AJC, MEAA Letter Urging Teachers' Union to Stop Anti-Israel Campaign

Massachusetts Educators Against Antisemitism (MEAA) and American Jewish Committee (AJC) New England have issued a public letter expressing concern about a year-long campaign by Massachusetts Teachers Association (MTA) leadership to demonize Israel and spread anti-Zionist propaganda into classrooms.

"Teachers don't need their union to tell them what to think or how to teach," says the letter, signed by about 2,000 commonwealth residents. "It is time to allow them to do what they do best. We are writing to urge that the MTA discontinue efforts to inject its views into K-12 classrooms. Our schools are for education not indoctrination."

The letter follows a December 2024 AJC New England report that detailed the MTA's anti-Israel campaign. Among the concerns cited in this letter is the recent publication of a dramatically one-sided set of curriculum resources on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict that justify the murder of Israeli civilians and demonize Israel, Zionism, and those who support a secure and peaceful future for the people of Israel. The resources were published on the MTA's members-only website.

The extreme content in these curriculum resources, the absence of even a pretense of balance, and concern that these resources could politicize K-12 classrooms, prompted the letter writers to call on the MTA to remove these curriculum resources and stop "spreading content that is contributing to a hostile environment for some Jewish teachers and others who have different views of the conflict."

Of the 89 resources listed by the MTA, more than 60 characterize Israel as an illegitimate state and/or reduce a complex conflict to allegations of wrongful occupation, the letter states, adding that the resources "promote extreme ideas that often reinforce antisemitic tropes."

One of the resources, for example, includes Palestinian revolutionary posters that feature a Star of David dripping in blood.

AJC New England connects our community with American Jewish Committee's global advocacy work to enhance the well-being of the Jewish people and Israel. Our access to diplomats, elected officials, and interfaith leaders at the local level advances AJC's broader priorities: combating antisemitism, promoting Israel's place in the world, and countering the spread of radicalism and extremism.