School culture work takes time in building trust and establishing community, but the effort is worthwhile, especially when confronting topics like antisemitism, Islamophobia, and other forms of racism and bigotry.
Some teachers may feel that the best way to ensure equality in their classrooms is to take an approach that does not address or consider race, religion and ethnicity. However, failing to acknowledge their students’ unique identities means they are unable to recognize the ways race, religion and ethnicity shape their students’ experiences and learning needs. Educators should strive to understand how these identities affect their students while also recognizing that they do not make up an individual’s entire personal identity.
Educators can begin by examining their classroom spaces and curricula. Start by auditing the content displayed on classroom walls and around the school hallways. Are all students’ identities reflected in those quotes, artworks or posters? What gaps are there? How can young people help create the displays on the wall (or curate the books in your library) to ensure their learning spaces are reflective of who they are?
Co-created visuals of community identities are a constant reminder to students and families that they belong. Following up these visual markers with intentional curricular texts that also reflect the identities of students will underscore the value students bring to the learning space and the support they have from you as a result. Ensure that the community visuals and content reflects the values of inclusivity while avoiding harm.
In our polarized environment, avoiding popular slogans and rhetoric in discussing complex histories and world events can help to steer clear of language that may be divisive or cause hurt toward one community or another. Practice detailed and nuanced thinking about complicated issues with young people, rather than trying to simplify complexities with catch phrases.
Many young people crave the space to be able to dialogue about critical issues. Often it is the educator who is hesitant to facilitate such a conversation for fear of “saying the wrong thing.” It is therefore important for adults to lay the groundwork for engaging in these conversations. Educators need to recognize their own perspectives and biases, reflect on their own identities, and begin to understand how those affect their own competencies with certain critical topics.
If you are unsure how to begin this work, LFJ’s Let’s Talk! guide has a few reflection activities to start. Reflect on your identities by considering questions such as:
- What messages did I learn about Jewish and Muslim people and communities growing up? Consider what messages you learned from family, friends, school, books, media, extracurricular or religious communities.
- How does my belonging to or not belonging to one of these identities affect my relationship to people who do?
- What messages—both implicit and explicit—do I convey to my students about religions and identities?
Continue your reflection by completing these statements:
- Talking about antisemitism is challenging because …
- Talking about antisemitism is necessary because …
- Talking about antisemitism is beneficial because …
- Talking about Islamophobia is challenging because …
- Talking about Islamophobia is necessary because …
- Talking about Islamophobia is beneficial because …
[Note: This activity can be valuable in addressing a variety of identities and topics, such as ability, race, body type, sexual orientation or immigration status, among others. See pages 5-11 of Let’s Talk! for more reflection tools for approaching critical conversations.]
LFJ’s Speak Up at School guide offers tools and strategies to prepare educators and young people to address hate, prejudice and stereotypes at school, and these recommendations may be adapted to other spaces as well.
The four Speak Up strategies are interrupt, question, educate and echo. Using at least one of these strategies whenever you encounter hate or bias can confront the prejudiced comment and support the targeted person(s). These strategies have no specific order, though you may find yourself using multiple strategies together.
Interrupt
Be consistent in addressing hateful or biased statements; interrupt every time. Letting one incident go then speaking up against the next one sends an inconsistent message: that sometimes bigotry is OK; other times it isn’t. Letting the first instance go without comment also sends the message to anyone nearby that it’s OK to say bigoted things.
To prepare to interrupt in the moment, plan some statements that you can use so you don’t have to think on the spot. For example, you can try saying, “That phrase is hurtful,” or, “I don’t like words like that.”
Question
Asking simple questions can help you find out why a speaker made an offensive comment. From there, you can begin to figure out how best to address it. Tone matters in these moments. Your goal is to understand the roots of the speaker’s prejudices, then help add context and information to dispel them.
Steer away from aggressive questions and try asking probing questions such as: “Why do you say that?” “What do you mean?” Or simply inquire with “Tell me more.” These types of questions put the onus on the speaker to provide context and think through why they made the hateful or biased comment.
Educate
Take time to explain why a hateful remark may be rooted in prejudice. This is where “calling someone in” can really help to provide context and explain why a term or phrase may be offensive. For example, you can begin by asking, “Do you know the history of that word?”
It is important to note two things: 1.) Hate isn’t behind all hateful speech, as sometimes ignorance or lack of exposure to diverse peoples and places can be at play. And 2.) It is not your “job” to educate everyone else about bigotry. People do need to take responsibility for their own ignorance. But especially in a school context and if it is the first time you hear this person say something offensive, try to educate to understand.
Echo
There is strength and power in numbers. In group settings, if someone has said something derogatory and not one but four people speak up, the echoing power can have a multiplying effect. When we can use echo to show solidarity around an injustice, we can pave the way for a more inclusive and equitable future.
To echo, thank the person who courageously spoke up against the derogatory statement and show your support by reiterating their claim. This could look like: “Thank you for speaking up. I agree that word is offensive, and we shouldn’t use it.” When echoing, it is important to remember that the group is acknowledging the language that was offensive, and not the person themselves. It is important, therefore, to echo in a manner that avoids escalation—being mindful of one’s own word choice and tone in the response.
The Speak Up guide acknowledges that various dynamics play a role in how and when a person might, or might not, speak up. We suggest thinking through the consideration questions in the guide and practicing the strategies with young people and other adults so you all feel prepared to speak up the next time statements of prejudice, bigotry or hate are made in your classroom, school or community. When we are prepared to act against hate, we can move toward the affirming, supportive and inclusive community we want to see.
