To the Editors:

Re “Day of Racial Reform and Solidarity ‘23” (Dec. 12, 2023):

On the December 6th “Day of Racial Reform and Solidarity,” many students gave inspiring speeches sharing how they faced and overcame challenges as a consequence of their racial identities. One student defied the intention of program organizers, which was to center voices of students from underrepresented races when he used the platform to draw a parallel between (i) historically recognized war crimes and genocide perpetrated during the Balkan wars of the 1990s and (ii) the current actions of the Israeli army in Gaza to free hundreds of innocents taken by Hamas as hostages and to destroy the ability of the Hamas terrorists, who committed the worst attack against innocent civilians in Israel’s 75 years of existence, to repeat their attack and to continue to launch rockets at civilian areas inside Israel.
On a day that was meant to create more understanding among students with the potential of healing, these remarks did the opposite. Not only did the speaker’s remarks worsen the ongoing trauma experienced by Jewish students, but they were also based on a completely false premise. Israel is trying to uproot Hamas from among the innocent Palestinians in Gaza. Hamas’ use of rape as a weapon of war, torturing and murdering children, elderly and entire families, and its promise to do it again demonstrates that Hamas is the actor perpetrating genocide. The accusation that Israel is committing genocide is not only inaccurate but is also reminiscent of a classic blood libel. This was the message that the student speaker was sending. The applause that these remarks garnered, coupled with silence from administrators in the room at the moment, led many Jewish and Israeli students to question whether the high school is providing a safe learning environment for them.

In writing this letter, no one is attempting to silence general criticism of the state of Israel’s actions. In fact, most Israelis themselves today are critical of the current Netanyahu government. The hurt we are trying to address arose out of the dangerously false parallels which the student speaker asserted concerning the Israeli response to the October 7th massacre perpetrated by Hamas, without any opportunity for rebuttal or alternative perspectives.

This has been a very difficult and stressful time for all of us in Brookline who feel connected to Israel. As a Jewish community, we find ourselves experiencing fear in the face of rising antisemitism and inaccurate/unfair demonization of Israel. In the midst of these heartbreaking circumstances, we are concerned about how Jewish and Israeli Brookline High School students are doing. We are the parents of current and former Brookline students. We want our young people to know they are not alone. If any student wishes to connect with us, feel free to reach out to social studies teacher Marcie Miller at [email protected]. Your voices matter, and we can help you interface with school district officials and the Brookline School Committee if you wish to share your concerns or experiences.

Jewish and Israeli students have the same civil rights as all others to a welcoming and inclusive learning environment, free from discrimination and fear.

From,
BROOKLINE COALITION AGAINST ANTISEMITISM
Ruth Kaplan
Ruvi Kitov
Danna Perry
Yana Shechterman
Sassan Zelkha