At the National Education Association’s 2025 Representative Assembly, delegates approved a controversial resolution for the union’s handbook that referenced “the more than 12 million victims of the Holocaust from different faiths, ethnicities, races, political beliefs, genders, and gender identification, abilities/disabilities, and other targeting characteristics,” conspicuously omitting the word Jewish.
The Holocaust was a genocide that primarily targeted Jews. Leaving that out is not just inaccurate, it is offensive. Some may argue that the wording is quite deliberate, especially when the Left’s favorite term, “gender identification” was used.
They made sure to mention “gender identification,” but just happened to forget to mention the word “Jewish” in a section about the Holocaust? Forgive me if I don’t believe that excuse.
The backlash came swiftly from Jewish advocacy organizations, parents, and even many teachers. The idea that the NEA would use its official handbook to erase Jewish identity from the Holocaust while including one-sided political talking points about Israel struck a nerve. Many saw it not as an isolated incident, but as the latest example of a broader problem: the union’s focus on ideological activism rather than its stated mission to serve educators and students.
In response to the criticism, the NEA released a statement clarifying that handbook resolutions do not represent official NEA policy but rather proposals submitted by members and adopted by delegates. That may be technically true, but it does little to resolve the underlying issue. This resolution is now in an official NEA publication, and it joins a growing list of politically charged items that have made their way into union-endorsed materials.
Some materials even included coloring books calling Zionists “bullies.” And in one high school, students were assigned to role-play as Palestinian peasants and Zionist leaders in a classroom mixer activity. This is politicized indoctrination.
What the NEA is really trying to do is cover for a much deeper problem: the union’s leadership is constantly playing clean-up for its increasingly radical base.
For example, at the same 2025 Representative Assembly, union delegates voted to cut ties with the Anti-Defamation League (ADL), accusing the group of “anti-Palestinian rhetoric.” The vote passed. But in a rare and revealing move, the NEA’s Board of Directors stepped in and reversed the decision.
That veto says everything. NEA leadership knows how damaging these resolutions are to the union’s public image, especially with growing backlash from Jewish educators, families, and a wide spectrum of parents who want politics out of the classroom.
The fact that the board had to override its own members shows how far the NEA has veered into activist territory. Leadership is walking a political tightrope, trying to appease its most extreme members while still appearing credible to the general public.
But these cleanup attempts are wearing thin. No matter your views on the ongoing Middle East war, most people can agree that it’s a touchy subject. However, the NEA’s radical base keeps dragging the union further into cultural and geopolitical conflicts that have no place in K–12 education.
This trend is not confined to the national level. Teachers unions at the state and local level have also jumped headfirst into the Israel-Palestine debate, nearly always on one side.
In Maine, the state’s teachers union has pushed for the state pension system to divest from companies associated with Israel.
In Portland and Oakland, teachers held classroom “teach-ins” using materials that referred to Israel as an apartheid state and accused Zionists of land theft. Some materials even included coloring books calling Zionists “bullies.” And in one high school, students were assigned to role-play as Palestinian peasants and Zionist leaders in a classroom mixer activity.
The union’s role should be clear: advocate for better pay, better working conditions, and better outcomes for students. That does not require weighing in on international conflicts or rewriting history to suit a political narrative.
This is politicized indoctrination. They cannot use the argument that these are just significant current events that teachers want to address in the classroom, because their treatment of the subject is so obviously biased. Again, regardless of your personal views on the subject, what does this have to do with K-12 education?
Meanwhile, the real crisis in American public education continues to deepen. According to the Nation’s Report Card, only about one-third of students are proficient in reading. Math scores are at historic lows. In districts like Oakland, where some of these biased, union-backed lessons are being pushed, only 36 percent of students can read at grade level.
But sure, let’s make sure every child knows the word “nakba” before they master phonics.
The NEA insists it is working to create inclusive schools and support all students. But if the goal is inclusion, why is one group’s history being downplayed while another’s political narrative is elevated?
All students deserve to see their history taught truthfully and respectfully, including Jewish students. And all students deserve a classroom environment free from political pressure and propaganda, especially about such a heated and complicated overseas conflict.
Public schools serve diverse communities, including both Jewish and Palestinian students, as well as countless others whose parents simply want them to get a decent education without being dragged into the one-sided activism of far-Left teachers unions.
The union’s role should be clear: advocate for better pay, better working conditions, and better outcomes for students. That does not require weighing in on international conflicts or rewriting history to suit a political narrative. Whether you think our government should be involved in the Israel-Palestine conflict or not, can we all agree that the U.S. K-12 classroom is not the place to preach leftist political dogma?
The NEA needs to get back to its mission before it loses any remaining trust from parents, educators, and communities who are watching this unfold and wondering who is actually looking out for our students.
