Jewish American Heritage Month

Posted By simmons on May 1, 2017

A growing number of schools are asking the Anti-Defamation League for hate crimes help. ADL is also increasing training for law enforcement officers.

The Anti-Defamation League has been dealing with hate incidents for many years. As a result, its become the largest non-governmental provider of law enforcement training in the country, according to an email support alert it released today because its experiencing a spike in school requests for hate crimes help.

National Public Radio (NPR) featured ADLs school peer-training program because Massachusetts schools have been contacting the state for help with hate incidents created by or affecting students and school populations through a hate crimes hotline established by Attorney General Maura Healey.

Schools across the region are also calling ADL directly a lot more often.

The demand for our work goes beyond Jewish institutions. Local middle and high schools are requesting ADLs anti-bias programs at a rate not seen in years. Schools are calling ADL daily to request our assistance and expertise.

Why They Need Hate Crimes Help

Tovia Smith of NPRs All Things Considered wroteschools are grappling with how to prevent and respond to incidents, often under enormous pressure and amid public outcry. Some have come under fire - and investigation for failing to report incidents. Administrators say they have to strike a delicate balance between being transparent and not giving offenders undue attention or provoking copycats.

Schools are reporting that they find more recent hate crimes challenges overwhelming, and there is no standard for how they candeal with the types and flavor of incidences they are experiencing.

Administrators are being critiqued and criticized for how they handle incidents.They want to avoid headlines, according to a representative from the teachers union.

While the more recent hate wave includes overt incidents, like a student from Medway, Mass., featured in a video with a rifle saying the N-word and kill em all,some teachers are not tolerating gestures like hanging a swastika at school, and find school administrators will not always back them up.

Its community accused Stoughton High School of beingtoo soft on astudent who hung a swastika, and overly punitive of the teacher that called a college to rescind a recommendation letter for the student. The teacher was suspended for 20 days. Stoughton Schools Superintendent Marguerite Rizzi told NPRthe district is focused on both student misconduct and student privacy.

Calling in ADLs Hate Crimes Help

Requests for ADLs A World Of Difference program to address bigoted behavior has dramatically increased by five times, according to NPR.

Administrators can recruit students eager to address hate they witness or experience for a three-day training to learn how to run peer tolerance workshops. They role-play and take part in activities andexercises meant to encourage empathy and bystander intervention.

The schools are also leading racial healing exercises with affected students like group art or writing projects and hosting community conversations with professional facilitators.

Read the original storyon NPRs website.

Continued here:
ADL is Supporting More Schools Requesting Hate Crimes Help - Efficient Gov (press release) (blog)

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