‘Pupils competed to stick Palestine flags on me’, says tearful Jewish teacher
One teacher claims to have been singled out by pupils for harassment while others have left a teachers' union citing its stance on Israel.
A Jewish teacher has bravely spoken out after becoming the target of physical abuse in the classroom following increased tensions in the Middle East.
The school teacher in north London, who does not want to be identified out of fear of the abuse worsening, told Jewish News how they became a magnet for harassment from pupils.
“The whole school was full of Palestine flags, the pupils all began shouting ‘Free Palestine,” they said. “At the beginning, I thought they were just making a statement for all the teachers, but then I realised it was targeted to me and other teachers that are Jewish.”
The teacher, who works in a non-Jewish school, said pupils competed to see who could stick the most amount of Free Palestine stickers on their hair and clothing.
“They were trying to stick Free Palestine stickers in my hair, I broke into tears, I couldn’t take my class that morning,” they said.
The senior leadership of the school has not offered any support following the incident, they alleged. The NEU, a teachers’ union, was also criticised for emailing members urging them to attend a pro-Palestinian demo, while not condemning antisemitism.
“I resigned immediately,” said the teacher. “They didn’t try and get me to stay, they just said if you want to resign follow this link.”
It comes after teachers at JFS staged a mass exodus from the union citing its stance on Israel and wider antisemitism.
At least 25 members of the union, along with three official reps, at the north west London based school have quit since February.
One former rep, John Lopez, said: “I felt I had no choice to leave the Union which isolated me as a Jewish, pro-Israel, teacher.”
The NEU has been contacted for comment. In a previous statement it said: “We are appalled by recent attacks on the Jewish community and will continue to stand in solidarity with all those facing racism and oppression.”
Thank you for helping to make Jewish News the leading source of news and opinion for the UK Jewish community. Today we're asking for your invaluable help to continue putting our community first in everything we do.
For as little as £5 a month you can help sustain the vital work we do in celebrating and standing up for Jewish life in Britain.
Jewish News holds our community together and keeps us connected. Like a synagogue, it’s where people turn to feel part of something bigger. It also proudly shows the rest of Britain the vibrancy and rich culture of modern Jewish life.
You can make a quick and easy one-off or monthly contribution of £5, £10, £20 or any other sum you’re comfortable with.
100% of your donation will help us continue celebrating our community, in all its dynamic diversity...
Engaging
Being a community platform means so much more than producing a newspaper and website. One of our proudest roles is media partnering with our invaluable charities to amplify the outstanding work they do to help us all.
Celebrating
There’s no shortage of oys in the world but Jewish News takes every opportunity to celebrate the joys too, through projects like Night of Heroes, 40 Under 40 and other compelling countdowns that make the community kvell with pride.
Pioneering
In the first collaboration between media outlets from different faiths, Jewish News worked with British Muslim TV and Church Times to produce a list of young activists leading the way on interfaith understanding.
Campaigning
Royal Mail issued a stamp honouring Holocaust hero Sir Nicholas Winton after a Jewish News campaign attracted more than 100,000 backers. Jewish Newsalso produces special editions of the paper highlighting pressing issues including mental health and Holocaust remembrance.
Easy access
In an age when news is readily accessible, Jewish News provides high-quality content free online and offline, removing any financial barriers to connecting people.
Voice of our community to wider society
The Jewish News team regularly appears on TV, radio and on the pages of the national press to comment on stories about the Jewish community. Easy access to the paper on the streets of London also means Jewish News provides an invaluable window into the community for the country at large.
We hope you agree all this is worth preserving.
