Giving Compass' Take:

NYC schools are planning to combat hate and anti-Semistism by building more inclusive and religiously tolerant curriculum for students.

Will more tolerance-building help reduce anti-semitism? What can donors do to help NYC schools with this effort?

Learn more about how schools should respond to anti-semitism.


In the wake of a string of anti-Semitic attacks in and around New York City, schools Chancellor Richard Carranza said Friday the education department is developing a new curriculum about hate crimes that will be rolled out next school year.

In the meantime, the nation’s largest school system said it will make available additional resources to teach about these crimes in the context of current and historical events.

“We know that enlightenment starts in the classroom,” Carranza told reporters at Franklin Delano Roosevelt High School in Borough Park, a Brooklyn neighborhood known for its large ultra-Orthodox Jewish population. “It starts with how do students learn about each other, how do they learn about other cultures, how do they make connections from what history has taught us to what is happening currently?”

As part of a broader set of efforts to combat anti-Semitism, city officials said they are implementing “hate crime awareness programming” this month at middle and high schools in Williamsburg, Crown Heights, and Borough Park, three Brooklyn neighborhoods that are home to large numbers of ultra-Orthodox Jews, many of whom wear traditional garb and speak Yiddish. In recent weeks, several members of these communities have faced alleged instances of verbal harassment and physical assault on New York City streets.

In light of recent events, schools are being encouraged to foster discussions about discrimination and religious intolerance “and collectively explore the positive actions they can take to promote acceptance, inclusion, and the diversity of their communities,” a department official wrote.

Read the full article about curriculum in NYC schools that will combat hate by Alex Zimmerman at Chalkbeat.