Teaching in the public school system in Southern California has taught me a lot of things. However, the most important thing that I learned through my several years as a public educator in California is that teaching “tolerance” means anti-Semitism is just fine. In public schools, anti-Semitism is the new “Black,” just like the Netflix popular series Orange is the New Black. In other words, anti-Semitism is cool.
If you are a gay student, you are protected. If you are Hispanic, the public school system will make sure anybody who even hints that you are inferior will be severely punished. If you are Black, you are a protected minority as well. But no matter how many times supposedly open-minded teachers teach “The Diary of Anne Frank,” a Jewish student isn’t protected. The public education doesn’t really consider Jews minorities. Some think it’s because of their light skin color, while others think it’s because many come from families who just happen to work hard and make a good living. However, the seething hatred of Israel from most liberal educators is what causes most of their apathy towards Jewish students in the present day.
Discussions about how the Holocaust never happened are common in California public schools. Just ask “Jazzy,” a Southern California high school student who was interviewed by Martin Hill from Libertyfight.com. The clip, which went viral, has been erased but not before receiving thousands of “likes” when it first aired. In the video, Jazzy cites that there has been no proof Jews died from being gassed to death. She mentions that not a single body was found with any signs of being gassed. The most disgusting part about this ignorance: Jazzy received an “A” on a homework assignment she submitted based on her research.
The truth is that in California’s public education system, one can earn an “A” on an assignment that has several spelling errors, contains shady research, and is completely incoherent. Teachers believe giving students high grades increases their confidence, even if the high grade hasn’t truly been earned. However, can you imagine a student turning in an assignment that denies slavery existed? Can you imagine a student turning in a paper that hints the suicide of Tyler Clementi had nothing to do with his sexuality? You can bet that student would be yelled at, suspended, and viciously taunted by the school staff. Imagine what would happen with the teacher who gave that student an A!
My first professional experience with anti-Semitism came when teaching in Glendale, a middle class city that is just a couple minutes north of Los Angeles. A majority of the population is Armenian and I was shocked to learn just how much a significant percent of Armenians in Glendale hates Jews. This shocked me, especially since studying how Armenians, like Jews, faced inhumane genocide. Even the best and most intelligent Armenian students were taught to hate Jews. Things turned pretty brutal when a Jewish student of mine named Stacey was severely bullied and physically attacked by other Armenian students, who received an after-school detention something their parents actually thought was too harsh.
Our administration had us attend several conferences on “diversity” and “tolerance.” However, my complaints about anti-Semitism coming from students and even other teachers were virtually ignored. But hey our school was required to teach “The Diary of Anne Frank,” even if one teacher told me she wouldn’t spend much time on the book since a lot of it was fiction. Some parents even requested that their child be offered an alternative assignment. Oh, and the teacher that called Anne Frank a spoiled princess is still teaching at the same exact school!
