Anti-Defamation League (ADL) CEO Jonathan Greenblatt said in a statement to the Journal that it’s “deeply disappointing” that the American Federation for Teachers (AFT) will not condemn the “dangerous” resolution put forth by their Los Angeles affiliate.
On June 9, Greenblatt sent a letter to AFT President Randi Weingarten expressing concern over the United Teachers for Los Angeles’ (UTLA) pending a vote on a motion supporting the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement. Weingarten responded with a June 14 letter obtained by the Journal stating that AFT doesn’t support BDS but “locals have broad autonomy, and the national union does not override locals over differences or questions of policy.” She added that UTLA “passed a strong resolution against antisemitism, while clarifying its internal process.” The motion was passed by UTLA Area chapters on May 19, but is not reflective of UTLA leadership; it will go to a vote in UTLA’s House of Representatives in September.
“It’s deeply disappointing to see the AFT take a hands-off approach to the damaging resolution being proposed by the UTLA, which calls upon the U.S. to end all aid to Israel and engages in the kind of delegitimization that has endangered Jewish people including the very students who attend LA public schools,” Greenblatt said. “The UTLA resolution doesn’t advance peace and won’t enhance the education of a single student in Los Angeles. Instead, it demonizes the Jewish state and potentially adds to an environment antisemitism already has taken root and exploded in the streets.
“While we appreciate the commitment of Ms. Weingarten to a two-state solution … the BDS movement endorsed by UTLA doesn’t support that outcome. As we expressed in a letter to Ms. Weingarten, a simple, succinct and unqualified condemnation of anti-Jewish hate would have been a more appropriate response to this moment of crisis when Jewish students, parents, faculty and administrators are seeking support.”
It’s deeply disappointing to see @AFTunion take a hands-off approach to the damaging resolution being proposed by the @UTLAnow that endorses BDS. https://t.co/MAfmOhNkBL
— Jonathan Greenblatt (@JGreenblattADL) June 17, 2021
In a time of rising antisemitism, the right response would have been a clear & cogent condemnation of anti-Jewish hate full stop. This letter falls far short of that simple ask, to the detriment of students in LA & around the US. Our letter here: https://t.co/pnVo4stCDa
— Jonathan Greenblatt (@JGreenblattADL) June 17, 2021
Associate Dean and Director of Global Social Action Agenda at the Simon Wiesenthal Center Rabbi Abraham Cooper also said in a statement to the Journal, “This is part of [a] broader assault. American Jews have always been there to defend others. Now with raging Jew-hatred on campuses and in our streets and attacks on our values including Zionism in unions, social media, indifference in America’s board rooms and among political elite [it’s] time for Jews to defend ourselves and urge our neighbors to help.”
AFT did not immediately respond to the Journal’s request for comment.
Earlier in the day, the Journal reported that a coalition of education groups sent a letter to AFT urging Weingarten to condemn the UTLA motion as well as the United Educators of San Francisco’s (UESF) passage of a resolution endorsing the BDS movement. A spokesperson from AFT referred the Journal to Weingarten’s letter to Greenblatt when asked about the coalition’s letter.
“It’s appalling that Ms. Weingarten asserts that the embrace of BDS and anti-Semitic rhetoric is merely ‘differences or questions of policy,’” Nicole Neilly, who heads the Parents Defending Education organization that spearheaded the letter, told the Journal. “This language and these policies create a hostile environment for students, teachers, and administrators, and should not be tolerated. Failing to either acknowledge or condemn this movement is little more than tacit approval.”
This article has been updated.
