UK Secretary of State for Education Gavin Williamson wrote to principals on Friday warning them that they must act on a growing number of cases of anti-Semitism in schools.
“Anti-Semitism is racism. It is something odious and which, like other forms of racism, has no place in our schools, ”reads the letter.
“I would also like to take this opportunity to remind schools of their legal obligations with regard to political impartiality,” Williamson wrote.
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“When political issues are brought to the attention of students, including through the activity and expression of other students, and this reaches the school, schools should provide students with a balanced presentation of the points. of opposing views. “
Illustrative photo: Protesters wave flags in London during a pro-Palestinian rally on May 22, 2021 (AP Photo / Alastair Grant)
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The minister said schools should avoid presenting information in a “politically biased or one-sided manner and should always avoid working with organizations that promote anti-Semitic or discriminatory views.”
Williamson also said that “schools should not work with or use materials from organizations that publicly reject Israel’s right to exist.”
The letter came amid an increase in anti-Semitic incidents in the UK, including in schools, since the recent conflict between Israel and terror groups in Gaza.
The Guardian reported that there had been pro-Palestinian protests in some British schools and controversy over the response of teachers.
Some students have been accused of anti-Semitism, while a director described the Palestinian flag as a “call to arms”.
As in previous rounds of Israeli military conflicts involving Palestinians over the past 20 years, anti-Semitic violence and intimidation has increased in Europe, where tens of thousands of protesters marched and gathered to express their rage. towards Israel. Some have used these events as pretexts to target Jews.
Pro-Palestinian activists and their supporters burn an Israeli flag during a protest in support of the Palestinians outside the Israeli embassy in London on May 22, 2021. (JUSTIN TALLIS / AFP)
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A report on Tuesday said that in the UK, 116 anti-Semitic incidents have been reported since May 9, the day before Hamas began launching rockets at Israeli towns, compared to just eleven cases in the two. previous weeks.
In an incident on May 16, a rabbi was beaten by two young men who used anti-Semitic slurs during the attack. Rabbi Rafi Goodwin suffered moderate injuries, requiring hospitalization. Police have arrested the suspected assailants, who are also accused of stealing Goodwin’s phone.
Last Friday, after the ceasefire, a man broke into the car of an Orthodox Jew in a heavily Jewish neighborhood in London and assaulted him. The suspect was held by passers-by until he was taken into police custody, the suspect reported. London Jewish News.
Earlier this month, four people were arrested on charges of using anti-Semitic slurs.
Officers were investigating a video circulating on social media in which “N ***** their mothers, rape their daughters” can be heard chanted from a car in north London where a large Jewish community lives. The car was part of a convoy of vehicles decorated with Palestinian flags.
