Together for an Inclusive Massachusetts is a group of Jewish, Muslim, Christian, labor, education, student, civil rights and other organizations and individuals advocating for justice and equity in the Commonwealth. Our steering committee includes representatives from Boston Workers Circle, Mass Peace Action, Jewish Voice for Peace Boston, Alliance for Water Justice in Palestine, Sawa: Newton-Area Alliance for Peace and Justice and many others.
We came together in response to a back-door effort, supported by Israel-aligned advocacy groups, to shape antisemitism policy and education in the Commonwealth through outside sections of the State budget. The Legislature formed a commission that is heavily stacked with exponents of the pro-Israel narrative on antisemitism. We want to ensure that the Commonwealth’s next steps are inclusive, transparent, and constructive. To be clear, it is our deep and unwavering commitment to equality and justice for all—including Jews and Palestinians—that compel our work.
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The second meeting of Massachusetts’ Special Commission on Combatting Antisemitism is scheduled for Tuesday, November 19th at 11am (State House and live streamed). Together for an Inclusive Massachusetts will show up as our powerful coalition of organizations and individuals standing together against both antisemitism and anti-Palestinian racism. You can attend in-person or view the proceedings on livestream.
At the first Commission meeting, the chairs shared a few updates:
- The deadline for the Commission report has been pushed to November 30, 2025
- The Commission will meet once a month at different locations
- They promised to “hear” from groups not represented on the commission to present: Orthodox Jews, Israeli Jews and “those who have different views on what counts as antisemitism.”
- The chairs will solicit public input on best practices but made no commitment to allowing public comment at meetings.
In addition, several troubling themes emerged from comments of the more vocal Commission members who shared their own priorities of issues to be tackled by this Commission (hearing video, see 00:46 to 1:04 time stamp):
- The First Amendment has limitations, especially in K-12 and post secondary schools. While this is legally true, we fear how they will deploy these exceptions to censor curricula in schools and against supporters of Palestinian rights.
- IHRA Definition: “It is not antisemitic to criticize Israel, but it is antisemitic to question Israel’s right to exist because Jews have a right to self-determination” (i.e. questioning Israel’s constitutionality is antisemitic, shutting the door on political speech they don’t like).
- “Anti Israel” is a new category of hate crimes/bias incidents included in data about antisemitism presented by ADL and by another Commission member sharing law enforcement data. Expanding civil rights protections to a state has implications on First Amendment rights and protections.
- Commission appears to be gearing up to promote a narrative of antisemitism on the left.
- Law enforcement implication: Commission member equated college protest actions as being in conflict with the safety of Jewish students.
- K-12 education implications:
- Mass Teachers Association, which is one of several labor unions to have endorsed a ceasefire resolution and organized a members-only training on understanding Anti-Palestinian Racism, was set up as a primary target for vilification.
- CJP and JCRC, two organizations that have exhibited partisan behavior towards Massachusetts Jewish organizations supportive of ceasefire and justice for Palestinians, stated that they are “changing curricula” in schools with multiple school districts.
- Workplace implications: CJP partnering with DEI and HR executives and college administrations on workplace issues.
The next meeting of the Commission will feature testimony from a selected group of high school students who will speak about their experiences with antisemitism in public and private schools, followed by a discussion by the Commission members.
The Chairs sent out a request for student testimony to students or parents interested in sharing their experiences of antisemitism in K-12 schools. Experiences of false accusations of antisemitism that have served to stifle discussion, debate and learning are also relevant to this commission, but they were not requested. Please consider sharing them as well so that Commissioners have a broader range of understanding about how antisemitism is deployed in schools. Submit testimony to scca@malegislature.gov (Deadline: Nov 15th). Please also send a copy to us at this email address, so we can track what information the Commission has received.
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Date: Tuesday, November 19, 2024 @ 11am In-Person:
If you can’t attend in person, please attend virtually:
Topic of the hearing: Antisemitism in MA public and private K-12 schools Learn about the Commission: Read more about the Commission and its members here. |
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We ask for your commitment to join us and show up at this vital meeting. Can we count on you to stand with us? This will not be the only meeting of the commission. We would love to see you at the subsequent commission meetings as well as any actions between the meetings. Let us know. |