Perth Amboy High School psychology teacher has “Teaching While Muslim” consultant company that claims Israel is committing “genocide” and “ethnic cleansing”

The organization Teaching While Muslim is an organization that offers resources and workshops for schools focusing on “implicit bias” and accusing Israel of “genocide.” Perth Amboy High School psychology teacher Nagla Bedir is a founder of the organization. On a page of resources on “Palestine,” the organization offers information on “educators know your rights pamphlet,” “supporting student activists,” “talking about Palestine in the Classroom,” and “decolonize Palestine.”

The resource for letting teachers “know your rights” for “teaching about Palestine” walks educators through the process of advocating against Israel in classrooms. One example is if teachers have a “ceasefire sign” on their doors. They are told to contact a “Union representative” if there is trouble.

The resource for “supporting student activists” encourages teachers to support students who protest against Israel because “students are constantly exposed to the daily atrocities that are egregious in Palestine.” Examples of student activism include “walk-outs,” “day of solidarity,” “boycotts,” and “protests/rallies.”

Teaching While Muslim offers lesson plans for elementary through high school. These lesson plans include a coloring page for young children of “Palestine” where Israel actually is. One lesson is titled “Genocide of Palestinians” that teaches students that Israel is committing “genocide” and “ethnic cleansing.” Another lesson is titled “Colonization – An Ongoing History” that claims Europeans colonized the Americas in a similar manner that Israel is now colonizing “Palestine.” In this lesson, students are told: “Compare and contrast the motivations, process, and repercussions of colonization in the Americas with the current colonization of Palestine under Israel.”

Teaching While Muslim also posts statements on Instagram sharing similar sentiments. In one post dated November 10, 2023, Teaching While Muslim stated on Instagram: “In my world, we are in a perpetual state of MOURNING and grief for the literal thousands of lives that have been stolen in the last month and 75 years.” This appeared to be in response to Israel retaliating after the Hamas attack. The organization then states in this post: “There is a genocide being waged against Palestinians in ALL of Palestine.”

A concerned community member captured screenshots of Instagram stories from Teaching While Muslim. The organization stated in one story: “When someone tells you they are ‘anti-Zionist,’ ask them specifically what they mean. Liberal Zionists posing as allies have co-opted and whitewashed the concept. Just as all oppressors do to the language of liberation.”

A story from Teaching While Muslim’s Instagram account also shared a post that stated: “If you are not for a liberated Palestine, I don’t like you. You should unfollow me and also not be around me if you see me coming.”