Talking about Gaza, Israel, and Palestine in Schools

Many youth and adults have been following the news and seeing divisive views presented regarding the violence in Gaza, Israel, and Palestine. It can be so easy to engage in either/or  and us vs. them thinking. We are being confronted with challenging feelings and questions regarding religion, land rights, war, and genocide. 

These feelings and questions and maybe even hate have been showing up in classrooms. This can be incredibly difficult to handle. We’ve put together some resources for talking about the violence and confronting Islamophobia and anti-semitism. We stand against anti-semitism and recognize its pervasiveness in Vermont schools and we understand that critiques of the Israeli state are not anti-semtic.  

Curriculum

• Creating Cultural Competencies: Countering Anti-Muslim Racism in Schools Curriculum

• Islamophobia is Racism: Resource for Teaching & Learning about anti-Muslim Racism in the United States

• Facing History & Ourselves: The Roots and Impact of Antisemitism

• Teaching About the Violence in Gaza and Israel: Zinn Education Project

• Challenge Islamophobia: A Project of Teaching for Change 

• ReThinking Schools: Violence in Israel and Gaza

• TeachPalestine.org

Articles and Books

• ReThinking Islamophobia: ReThinking Schools

• MHS Swastika not the only Antisemitic Incident in Schools

• Expelling Islamophobia: Learning for Justice

• How anti-Muslim sentiment plays out in classrooms across the US

• Free Ebooks for a Free Palestine!

• Decolonize Palestine: Palestine 101

• We are Palestinian: A Celebration of Culture and Tradition

• Independence or Catastrophe? Teaching Palestine through multiple perspectives

Reports

• Islamophobic Bullying Rampant in US Schools: Report

Restorative Justice Circles

• Current Events Circle

• Violence in Gaza, Israel, and Palestine Circle

Organizations

• Vermonters for Justice in Palestine

• Visualizing Palestine

Questions for Educators to Consider:

• How has anti-Arab xenophobia and racism associated with the recent events in Israel/Palestine impacted you, your students, and your school community? 

• How can we interrupt xenophobic or racist comments, conversations, and harassment from our students or peers?

• How can we equip our students with the historical context and skills to discern when something is xenophobic and how they can respond? 

Thank you Jade Walker and Wafic Faour for gathering many of these resources. Do you have resources to add? Please share them with us by emailing kayla.edjvt@gmail.com. We’ll continue adding to this blog post.

The Coalition mourns the civilian loss of life regardless of their traditions, ethnic identities, or political identities and wishes for a world without war. We stand in solidarity for a free Palestine and echo the calls for a ceasefire. 

What else can I do?

• You can call for a ceasefire by contacting your representatives at this link. 

• Attend the “Jews Say Ceasefire Now!” Burlington Rally on Thursday, Oct. 26th at 4:30pm on Church St.

• Listen to Mohammed El-Kurd speak about Palestine “Women and Children” and the Politics of Appeal on Thursday, Oct. 26th at 7pm online.