The Jewish Community Relations Council of Greater Washington and the Anti-Defamation League in D.C. are disappointed and hurt that some school districts in the area have not acknowledged Hamas’ terroristic attack on Israelis “and the profound trauma being experienced by Jewish students, parents, and employees.”
While the two organizations note that many districts have realized the importance of dealing with the “horrific attack on Israel,” they are most upset with Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS).
“We reserve our greatest anger and disappointment for Montgomery County Public Schools. MCPS’ senior management has consistently ignored our agencies’ urgent appeals over the last three days to respond appropriately and sensitively to the large Jewish community in the district, insisting instead that principals alone shoulder the burden of a public response,” the two organizations wrote in a shared news release.
MCPS issued a community message Tuesday night, stating, “Our heartfelt thoughts are with our students and their families, who may be experiencing the impact of the deeply disturbing and tragic violence in Israel and Gaza in a variety of ways.”
The statement continued, “Our schools must be welcoming, safe, and secure places for all students.”
The statement was directed to students and families with ties to the region or who “may be subject to anxiety based on what they see in the news. This tragic series of events may also come on top of emotions triggered by other recent events.”
MCPS listed three national resources for families.
This statement was “inadequate,” according to officials from the two organizations. They called it “weak, carefully worded statements that prioritized a perceived need for even-handedness over truth, authenticity, and compassion. Make no mistake, there are not two sides to this tragedy – there is no way to justify Hamas’ war crimes and unconscionable atrocities,” according to the JCRC and ADL statement.
“Our school systems’ refusal to honestly name the largest slaughter of Jews since the Holocaust is infuriating and disheartening to our entire community. A large number of local Jews have deep personal connections to Israel: they have loved ones who were murdered or are missing, they have children serving in the Israel Defense Forces who have been deployed, and they are seeing harrowing images of more than one thousand innocent civilians murdered simply because they were Jewish. Our offices have been flooded with hundreds of complaints and pleas for Jewish students, parents and educators to be seen and heard in their time of immense pain,” the two organizations wrote.
They called on Superintendent Dr. Monifa McKnight and MCPS “to do a better job of listening to and understanding what their Jewish communities need right now.”
Their statement went on to declare, “The coming days will likely only prove more painful, and we grieve for the loss of all innocent life, regardless of religion or national identity. But if our schools can’t call out the brutal murder of Jews right before our eyes, of what use is the Holocaust education and cultural competency that we have worked together to advance? You must do more. You must do it now. ”
The JCRC of Greater Washington and @ADL_WashDC released the following statement today:
@MCPS https://t.co/VryvFuEBe9— JCRC of Greater DC (@JCRCgw) October 11, 2023
