Oakland Schools Face Heat for Jewish Student Discrimination

The California Department of Education has issued three rulings against the Oakland Unified School District, finding that it created a hostile environment for Jewish students and staff. The district was criticized for taking over a year to respond to complaints of antisemitism, far exceeding the allowed 60-day period.

Complaints and Findings

• Complaints were filed by Oakland attorney Marleen Sacks, representing Jewish families.
• Issues included:
• Anti-Israel discussions
• Pro-Palestine posters and maps in classrooms and hallways.
• Flying the Palestinian flag on a school flagpole at Fremont High School, perceived as favoring one point of view.
• An unauthorized teach-in on Palestine, led by a dozen teachers, which was deemed biased and excluded an Israeli perspective.

District's Response

• The district acknowledged that some materials violated its policy on teaching controversial subjects.
• It plans to start additional trainings in December to address antisemitism and hatred more broadly.

Impact on Jewish Families

• At least two dozen Jewish parents have transferred their children to other districts or private schools due to the antisemitic environment.
• Marleen Sacks has filed a total of 25 complaints, citing various incidents including Free Palestine posters, teach-ins, and disruptive conduct at an antisemitism training session.

State Investigation and Orders

• The state investigation found that the district's inquiry did not adequately address allegations of discrimination or intimidation.
• The state ordered the district to hire a non-district trainer for high school social studies teachers and site administrators to ensure compliance with the Education Code ban on biased instruction.

Criticism from Pro-Palestinian Groups

• Groups like the Arab Resource and Organizing Center in San Francisco criticized the complainants for suppressing dissent by conflating criticism of Israel with antisemitism.

Skepticism from Marleen Sacks

• Sacks doubts the effectiveness of the new measures, stating that the district presents the complaints as isolated incidents, while antisemitism is districtwide.