IHRA definition could help Acton build community
My Acton childhood had an outsize impact on my life. And yet I am sorry to say we knew antisemitism.
As a former resident of Acton who graduated from Acton-Carlisle High School in 1973 and later taught at CCHS in the early 2000s, I am writing to encourage the Select Board of Acton to support the adoption of the IHRA (International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance) definition of antisemitism.
My family moved to Acton in 1964. At the time we were one of a handful of Jewish families that actually observed Judaism to a limited extent, meaning we went to synagogue on the High Holy Days and had a Passover Seder annually. We were also solid Acton citizens and volunteered for the Acton Players, Little League, and the Red Cross.
My Acton childhood had an outsize impact on my life. And yet I am sorry to say we knew antisemitism. It was of the kind that would now be called “micro-aggressions.” Years later, when I taught at CCHS, I experienced the same kinds of behavior from time to time on the part of colleagues that made me think that my presence was welcome so long as I didn’t present as obviously Jewish.
When I learned about the events that occurred in 2024-25 at the high school and middle school that were far more flagrant than anything I had experienced as a child, or as a teacher, I was shocked, probably because I always felt that the antisemitism I knew was born out of ignorance and that it would not grow into a malignancy. But apparently it did.
The people of Acton pride themselves on building an inclusive community in this modern era. There are many excellent examples of the effort. Adopting the IHRA definition of antisemitism would add to this new legacy and assist as a guide, especially in educational settings, to help administrators discern antisemitic behaviors, something they were lacking in recent years.
Amy Spound Friedman
Mark Lane, Sudbury
