Greetings of peace,
At ING, we are committed to peacebuilding through education and engagement across all our diversity. For the last 30 years we have brought you curriculum materials and educational presentations and panels of diverse ethnic and religious speakers on world religions, racism, and anti-racism to educators and community leaders.
In light of the tragic current violence in Israel and Palestine, if you are an educator, we ask that you keep the following in mind:
- Regardless of your position on the conflict, as a professional educator working for your state, you have a duty and obligation to prevent and, if necessary, respond to bullying and harassment.
- Students in our public schools, be they Muslim, Jewish, Arab, Israeli or perceived as members of any of these groups, should not bear the brunt of the conflict between Israelis and Palestinians thousands of miles away. This conflict should not be grounds for increased Islamophobia or antisemitism.
- Respecting freedom of expression does not mean condoning calling students—or anyone—derogatory names. Students, educators, and all school staff deserve to be treated with respect and dignity.
- If you are discussing the war in Israel and Palestine, it’s incumbent upon you to learn about the history of the conflict between Palestinians and Israelis. Some people are under the false impression that the conflict is thousands of years old. It is not. In many periods of history, Muslims and Jews had very positive relations. Looking at the British Mandate in Palestine is a good starting point for learning about the conflict.
- We are happy to provide Muslim and Jewish speakers to your classroom to address commonalities between the faiths and/or the current topics of Islamophobia and antisemitism, but it’s not in the scope of our work to address the political conflict. You can schedule Muslim and Jewish speakers here.
- If you discuss the political conflict, make sure the information you share is accurate and includes resources from both Palestinian and Israeli sources. If you want to invite a speaker to discuss the topic, parents of Palestinian and Israeli students, if you have them in your school, may be appropriate speakers for your classroom.
- Prevent harassment or bullying against students who are perceived to be Arab, Muslim, Israeli or Jewish.
- Make sure that students and their parents feel safe to report harassment and bullying.
- Make sure that you follow your district policies on preventing and responding to bullying.
ING staff and speakers are here to support you in every way we can if you’re working towards peace by building understanding and respect, promoting religious and ethnic pluralism, countering all forms of bigotry, and fostering a culture of belonging in your classroom and school.
Thank you for all you do for peace.
Maha Elgenaidi
ING Founder and Executive Director
