Minnesota teachers hold Palestine Event, Minneapolis Mayor Frey joins smear campaign

Minneapolis, MN – On November 22, over 100 union educators attended an informational event about Palestine, “Being an Educator in a Time of War and Genocide.” They braved a cold Friday night to attend, as well as attacks from backward groups outside their union, including smears from Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey.

The event featured prominent speaker Taher Herzallah, the director of outreach and grassroots organizing for American Muslims for Palestine (AMP). Herzallah was the primary target of the vocal attacks by Zionists and Mayor Frey in the lead-up to the event. Herzallah was labeled an antisemite, and the event was denounced as a sign of antisemitism in public education unions. Despite this opposition, rank-and-file members of both chapters of the Minneapolis Federation of Teachers (MFT 59) enjoyed Palestinian food, breakout sessions and well-informed discussions.

The attack on Taher Herzallah and the unionists seems to originate in part with the Jewish Community Relations Council (JCRC), a national Zionist pressure group, and far-right website Alpha News.

Jewish Voices for Peace (JVP) Twin Cities explained in their statement, “As Minneapolis Jews, we are outraged by the shameful provocation from the JCRC and Mayor Frey. We are grateful for Taher’s tireless work in speaking out against Israel’s ongoing attacks in Palestine and Lebanon and his years of multifaith organizing for justice, and we are grateful to MFT Educators for Palestine for organizing this important event.”

“Herzallah and I are clear that Zionism – which claims Jewish safety requires a nation-state where Jews have more rights than others – is a political movement that must be condemned, that Jews are a politically diverse group and that we can work together across faith lines for justice,” said Rabbi Jessica Rosenberg of JVP’s Rabbinical Council in a separate statement, adding they “look forward to working with Herzallah for years to come.” She called for an apology to Herzallah, detailing her years of work shoulder-to-shoulder with him.

Mayor Frey released a video parroting right-wing critics of public schools and teachers’ unions. Frey said teachers need to teach reading and math, not what he called “hate, pure and simple.” He called for the event’s cancellation. Nevertheless, the event was a major success and kept Herzallah as its main event speaker. It marks another loss for JCRC’s reactionary campaigns locally. Previously the JCRC’s Minneapolis operation failed in major campaigns to stop a Minneapolis city council ceasefire resolution and to prevent multiple unions from taking pro-Palestine, anti-Zionist actions.

The attack from the JCRC is particularly egregious, considering many of the members of the Free Palestine Coalition served on the solidarity committee for MFTs historic strike, while JCRC offered no material, written, or verbal support. Many in the Free Palestine Coalition are union members, or, like Taher Herzallah, are active supporters of unions and workers fighting for the right to organize.

The breakout sessions included lessons from Jewish educators about the differences between anti-Zionism and antisemitism. Teachers also learned about the ongoing campaign to divest unions and Minnesota from apartheid Israel.

The divestment breakout focused on the Minnesota State Board of Investment (SBI). It manages Minneapolis Public Schools’ teacher, education support professional and public worker pensions, and has extensive holdings in Israel. Event organizers and attendees expressed outrage at the investment board’s ongoing decision to invest in Israel’s apartheid and genocide, but were determined to work collectively toward divestment, a material contribution in the Palestine solidarity movement.

MFT 59 members have repeatedly given public comment at meetings of the SBI, demanding that it take immediate action to divest from apartheid Israel. Class struggle unionists celebrated this victory while looking ahead, members will make their voices heard at the upcoming SBI meeting on Tuesday, December 10.

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