Portland teachers’ union faces firestorm from Jewish community for promoting pro-Palestinian instruction

The Portland teachers’ union has released a social justice guidebook encouraging educators to promote pro-Palestinian sentiments in their classrooms.  

The guidebook claims Portland Public School leadership has been “actively censoring teachers and other education workers who are teaching about Palestine, posting pro-Palestine sentiments in schools, and even those wearing Pro-Palestine messages which disproportionately impacts our Palestinian and Southwest Asian and North African (SWANA) staff.”  

The Portland Association of Teachers (PAT) claims pro-Palestinian sentiment is “not a political statement” and even equates it to Black Lives Matter (BLM).  

PAT criticizes both district administration and “Zionist parents and community members” who have allegedly harassed and censored teachers. The union even refuses to acknowledge the phrase “From the River to the Sea, Palestine will be Free” is hate speech, and claims saying so is censorship.  

The guidebook’s section of terms and definitions is arguably filled with radical leftist ideology. For example, its definition of “anti-Palestinian racism” doesn’t even require a person to be Palestinian.  

“Palestinians still consider incidents involving non-Palestinians as APR [anti-Palestinian racism] because it still harms Palestinians and the silencing serves to uphold the settler-colonization of Palestine,” it says.  

In its section on anti-Zionism, PAT claims the anti-Palestinian narrative is part of the “broader attacks on decolonial, anti-racist, and gender and sexuality-affirming education.”  

The union concludes by encouraging educators to incorporate “Palestine” into their ethnic studies and English language instruction, as well as classroom decor.  

“Like the BLM or LGBTQIA+ flags, displaying the Palestinian flag proudly affirms the existence of Palestinian people and their right to live and thrive with dignity and freedom,” the guidebook reads.  

The Jewish community in Oregon is unequivocally horrified that the teachers’ union would push such blatant “propaganda.”  

“PAT is not only engaged in highly inappropriate anti-Israel political advocacy, now they are promoting what they call a ‘curriculum,’ which is, in fact, mere propaganda,” said the Jewish Federation of Greater Portland (JFGP). “It is one-sided, biased, and historically inaccurate, and it attacks Zionism, which is an integral part of Jewish identity for the majority of Jews worldwide.” 

Robert Horenstein, director of community relations and public affairs at JFGP, said PAT President Angela Bonilla met with the group, but did nothing about its concerns – adding that Bonilla “has heard from numerous Jewish teachers and students. She came to our office, she took a lot of notes. And in the end, nothing changed. 

“This is propaganda,” he says of the newly released guidebook. “If this were used in the classroom, it could potentially make a Jewish student feel unsafe.”  

PAT’s one-sided advocacy dates back to December, when it hosted events such as a “Palestine 101: Teach-In and Joint Struggle Panel.”