What happened in the Santa Clara County Board of Education (SCCBOE) on Jan. 10 and 29, when the board decided to issue a resolution calling for a “ceasefire” in Israel and Palestine, should worry every parent in our school district. Unfortunately, the Los Altos Town Crier coverage missed the behind-the-scenes details.
Over 2,000 parents and other Jewish organizations and leaders asked the SCCBOE not to issue this divisive resolution. Calling for an unconditional ceasefire, without condemning Hamas’ atrocious terror attack or even mentioning what forced Israel to defend itself, and accusing Israel of holding hostages is clearly a one-sided resolution that puts all the blame on Israel. The resolution had nothing to do with “fostering a safe environment for all students.’’ On the contrary, it aligns with Hamas’ agenda and encourages Jew-hatred and antisemitism in our schools. Those of us who are against Hamas and want to keep politics out of our schools have lost.
The time and resources wasted to debate and approve this resolution were at the expense of advancing our children’s education. This is even more troubling considering the many challenges our county schools face. Just a few months ago the Association of County Educators issued a report that shows the SCCBOE is failing in all three “subjects” that represent each of the county’s education goals: improving access to inclusive, equitable, high-quality education; providing quality support to districts, schools, students and communities; and being a premier service organization. And yet the SCCBOE found the time and resources to weigh in on a specific geopolitical conflict thousands of miles away.
Why was SCCBOE so determined to be the only county board of education in the nation, as far as we know, to force the political views of its board members onto our public schools?
The true story must be told. Five out of the seven board members indicated in the first board meeting that they want a resolution that supports all students. However, the two board members who initiated the resolution insisted it MUST include the term “ceasefire.” Multiple other terminologies were offered, but president Maimona Afzal Berta and board member Raeena Lari demanded the specific word “ceasefire.” Why?
Berta and Lari both have ties to the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR). Berta is an alumnus of CAIR’s youth leadership program and her mother is a CAIR board member. Lari’s campaign to join the board was endorsed by CAIR. The most common criticism of CAIR and its leaders is that they promote extremism.
SCCBOE members, who are not experts in the history and complexity of the Middle-Eastern conflict, failed to recognize or stop Berta and Lari’s biased attempt to co-opt the board and promote CAIR’s political agenda in our public schools. This should alarm every parent who cares about education and believes in our American values. We cannot let our county’s board of education promote international political agendas supported by extremist organizations such as CAIR.
Written by a group of Los Altos and Santa Clara County parents: Alexandra Levich, Amnon Levi, Einat Meisel, Elinor Tamari, Ilana Cohen, Liat Salman, Mariam Permut, Maybar Durst, Nadav Kanari, Sarith Rosenberg, Tal Shalon, Tzachi Rosenberg and Vadim Katz
