EXCLUSIVE: School District Employee Signed Up For Trainings On ‘Justice In Palestine’

A Chicago school district employee signed up for two training sessions focused on “exploring justice in Palestine,” according to emails obtained by Parents Defending 🎓Education (PDE).

Pat Savage-Williams, New Trier Township High School District 203’s “equity liaison” and “Seeking Educational Equity and Diversity (SEED) Facilitator/Equity Team Co-Chair,” signed up for trainings that would focus on “exploring justice for Palestine” and “ to foster a deeper understanding of the historical context, current challenges, and potential paths toward justice,” according to emails obtained by PDE. The trainings were reportedly hosted by SEED, which includes educators, organizers and social service providers who facilitate various conversations and work toward a “social justice” goal, according to its website.

“We are writing to invite you all to two sessions that we believe are timely and impactful for SEED. These sessions will focus on exploring justice for Palestine, aiming to foster a deeper understanding of the historical context, current challenges, and potential paths toward justice,” the SEED email reads. “We have a shared interest in promoting informed discussions on global issues, particularly settler colonialism, and we believe that addressing the complexities and misconceptions surrounding the Palestinian cause can contribute to promoting anti-racism and dismantling systems of oppression.”

The first session, which was reportedly held in March, intended to discuss “the collective knowledge of the group as well as name what we are still seeking to learn, acknowledge fears about this particular conversation, and focus on and recenter human rights and its ties to equity work,” according to the email. The second session, dated for April, was “designed to center marginalized voices, working to make connections to systems of oppression.”