National Plan Reflects the Debate Over Antisemitism
“The Biden plan suggests that Holocaust education can “teach students about hate, bigotry, racism, and prejudice more broadly,” but in much of the country, this may not be easily achievable due to anti-CRT attacks. Indeed, these efforts have sometimes caught Holocaust education in their crosshairs: In 2021, a Texas law designed to prevent the teaching of “CRT” in schools turned out to require that teachers present an “opposing view” of the Holocaust. The administration does not mention plans to counter this backlash or name its right-wing political origins, which some advocates see as an incomplete approach to a formidable issue. “[Anti-CRT attacks] undercut the possibility of a critical approach to antisemitism education, one which situates it within and alongside broader historic and ongoing structures of oppression,” said Ben Lorber, a senior research analyst for Political Research Associates who tracks white nationalism and antisemitism. Lorber sees what he calls the plan’s “depoliticized approach” as insufficient to address the “dire threats to multiracial democracy” that many states are facing.”