‘Hate is hate’: DOJ compliance a first step, school leaders say

School Committee member Sandeep Pisharody does not think the district’s proposed anti-harassment policy revisions are the “destination.”

“It’s a step toward where we need to go,” Pisharody told The Acton Bridge. “It’s part of the journey.”

The Acton-Carlisle Regional School Committee gave a first reading on May 6 to a series of Department of Justice-required revisions to the district’s anti-harassment and nondiscrimination policies vis-à-vis antisemitism. 

In April, the district announced it had reached an agreement with the DOJ to resolve a federal review into allegations that the school system failed to adequately respond to antisemitic harassment. The revisions stem from that agreement.

However, Pisharody and most other School Committee members voiced discomfort with the language on two fronts: They said it singled out antisemitism but excluded other forms of bias, and also that the antisemitism sections lacked nuance. For those reasons, they look to revisit the policies once federal requirements are satisfied.

Schools Superintendent Laurie Hunter said during the meeting that district counsel prepared the proposed edits to align with the federal agreement and urged the committee to avoid making substantial changes before the DOJ reviews them.

“For tonight, it’s about complying with the DOJ requirement,” Hunter said. “I would not recommend too much wordsmithing right now, because they’re looking for what they saw to just be modified to what they asked.”

The required edits

The proposed revisions update three district policies filed under the names JICK, AR, and AR-C. All three policies focus on harassment and discrimination. 

The changes add three examples of antisemitic conduct: drawing swastikas, using “Jew” as a derogatory term, and making Nazi salutes.

Another proposed addition states the district may take corrective actions following harassment incidents, including creating safety or support plans for victims and making public statements when legally appropriate.

“We’re doing that already,” Hunter said. “It’s just naming what we’re doing.”

But Hunter conceded the updates appear to single out antisemitism. 

“What about all the other isms?” Hunter said. “If we’re going to do that, we should be doing it for a lot more groups.”

During the meeting, Pisharody said that “some of [what’s] named in these policies lands very differently for members of my community.” 

Asked by The Bridge if he meant that other forms of hate were left out, he said, “Yes, absolutely, that’s one aspect of it.” He added, “Anytime there is language about discrimination, it’s not something that is going to make everyone happy.”

Matters of interpretation

Pisharody, who said he believes the language should eventually be revisited, raised concerns about how certain provisions could be interpreted.

“If I draw a painting of, let’s say, the rally at Nuremberg, that might fit under this language,” Pisharody said, referring to propaganda events sponsored by the Nazis in 1930s Germany.

School Committee METCO representative Ayesha Lawton said she, too, believes the district should revisit the policies in the future to ensure harassment protections are applied more uniformly across groups.

“Hate is hate, and harassment is harassment. It should not just be aimed at one kind of harassment,” Lawton told The Bridge. 

“If you harass someone from the LGBT community or people of color or a Jewish person, it should all be treated the same,” she said.

Joint School Committee Chair Tracey Marano said the School Committee is expected to adopt the new policy language at its next meeting on June 3. 

Following the other members’ comments on the policy updates, Marano said she anticipates more discussion in the future. 

“I think we’re all at this table very much in agreement,” she said, “that we want to look at it again.”