FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Pennsylvania Lawmakers Draw on CAMERA Research Into Antisemitism in Philadelphia Schools at Public Hearing
September 30, 2026 – As Pennsylvania lawmakers prepare to examine the rise of antisemitism across the Commonwealth, they will be making use of extensive research by the Committee for Accuracy in Middle East Reporting and Analysis (CAMERA).
The 81-page CAMERA investigation “Shaping Minds, Spreading Hate: How Antisemitism Took Root in the School District of Philadelphia,” authored by Director of CAMERA’s K-12 Program Rebecca Schgallis and released earlier this year, examined the role educational materials can play in creating a hostile environment for Jewish students and teachers.
Now those findings will be used at a public hearing on Wednesday, September 30, on “combating antisemitic hate,” held by the Pennsylvania Senate Majority Policy Committee.
CAMERA’s investigation found, among other concerns, that Philadelphia’s social studies curriculum shifted away from chronological historical study toward thematic material centered on concepts including capitalism, racism and settler colonialism. CAMERA also found major gaps in the curriculum’s treatment of world history, including limited or absent coverage of events such as the Enlightenment, the French Revolution, both World Wars and the Cold War.
Schgallis said ahead of Wednesday’s committee session: “I welcome the committee’s drawing on CAMERA’s research as it examines rising antisemitism across Pennsylvania and in the School District of Philadelphia. Our research demonstrates why lawmakers need to look beyond individual incidents and investigate how broader school policy and curricular initiatives can create an environment that is ultimately hostile to Jewish students.
“When Philadelphia parents came to CAMERA, they wanted to understand how outside curricular organizations were influencing SDP’s instructional materials. We ended up finding problems across the social studies curriculum. SDP’s curriculum used an oppressor/oppressed binary lens that cast Jews, Israel, and even the United States as oppressors, effectively teaching students to view them through a predetermined ideological framework rather than encouraging them to examine history and current events critically.
“CAMERA’s research revealed that Pennsylvania’s vague social studies standards, along with an absence of state assessments, have effectively given SDP schools and ideologically driven educators a permission slip to reshape history curricula, producing classrooms that prioritize activism over historical literacy,” Schgallis said.
The CAMERA investigation began after Philadelphia parents, responding to multiple incidents of antisemitism following October 7, 2023, urged CAMERA to investigate the district’s use of lesson plans and resources created by the Zinn Education Project.
Using publicly available curriculum materials, public records requests, and educators’ public social media activity, CAMERA investigated what students were being taught, the organizations and individuals influencing instructional content, and the ideological framework underpinning the district’s social studies curriculum.
Its findings were subsequently provided to parents and elected officials. CAMERA also shared its research with officials investigating the School District of Philadelphia and contributed its knowledge and expertise to the U.S. House Committee on Education and the Workforce, which was investigating antisemitism in the district.
Schgallis said of the Pennsylvania’s Senate Majority Policy Committee hearing: “I hope the hearing is a wake-up call for Pennsylvania elected officials and parents to take a hard look at how curriculum is shaped and whether the education students are receiving is contributing to, rather than confronting, antisemitism.”
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CAMERA, the Committee for Accuracy in Middle East Reporting and Analysis, is the leading organization exposing and countering anti-Israel narratives in the media, online, and in schools.
Founded in 1982 to monitor bias in print and network media, CAMERA has since broadened its expertise to confront misinformation directed at Israel and its supporters, wherever it exists. We correct falsehoods and distortions in the legacy media, expose disinformation on social media and other digital platforms, tackle antisemitism in K-12 education, support pro-Israel students on college campuses, and challenge anti-Israel campaigns targeting the Christian community.
For further information on the Committee for Accuracy in Middle East Reporting and Analysis, please visit camera.org
To read more about CAMERA’s work on K-12 Education, visit camera-edu.org.