Education and Workforce Committee Chairman Tim Walberg (R-MI) has sent a letter to National Education Association (NEA) President Rebecca Pringle, seeking explanations for what he describes as antisemitic positions within the union. The NEA is the largest teachers union in the United States, representing more than three million public school educators and administrators.
In his letter, Walberg states: “The Committee on Education and Workforce (Committee) is investigating antisemitism at the National Education Association (NEA), which represents more than three million public school educators and administrators across the United States. Specifically, the Committee is gravely concerned about antisemitic content in the NEA’s 2025 handbook and the NEA Representative Assembly’s vote in July 2025 to ban materials by the Anti-Defamation League (ADL). This investigation will aid the Committee in considering whether potential legislative changes, including legislation to specifically address antisemitic discrimination within labor unions and to combat antisemitism in federally funded schools, are needed.”
Walberg also highlights a section of the NEA handbook that discusses educating members about distinctions between anti-Zionism and antisemitism. He writes: “The handbook also states that the union will ‘use existing digital communication tools to educate members about the difference between anti-Zionism and antisemitism.’ In light of the above passages, the inclusion of this subject not only appears to reflect an ignorance of the perspective of Jewish people but also a potential animus towards them. Indeed, polling from Pew Research Center shows that 82 percent of Jewish adults in the United States consider ‘caring about Israel’ to be ‘an essential or important part of what being Jewish means to them.’”
He further addresses concerns over a recent resolution passed by NEA’s Representative Assembly: “The Committee is likewise concerned that on July 8, the NEA Representative Assembly voted to pass a resolution stating that the NEA ‘will not use, endorse, or publicize materials from the Anti-Defamation League, such as its curricular materials or statistics.’ The ADL is a non-profit focused on ‘stopping the defamation of the Jewish people’ and is dedicated to combating antisemitism. After the vote, Jewish union members said the measure ‘sends a troubling message of exclusion’ when ‘incidents of hate and bias are on the rise across the country.’ One Jewish teacher said in a union meeting that ‘some of our [NEA] members don’t feel safe.’”
The committee’s inquiry may inform possible legislative actions related to discrimination within labor unions and efforts against antisemitism in schools receiving federal funds.
