Erin James, press secretary for the Pennsylvania Department of Education, told JNS that the department is “reviewing all other materials” after removing an educational equity and inclusion guide—developed prior to Gov. Josh Shapiro taking office—that contained the Jerusalem Declaration on Antisemitism.
James told JNS that the department “has heard from concerned individuals over the past several days about the definition of antisemitism included in the document and we take those concerns seriously.”
Parents in the state told Jewish advocacy group StopAntisemitism that the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s working definition of antisemitism had been replaced in the guide with the Jerusalem Declaration, which states that “as it relates to Israel/Palestine, not all views or actions against Israel, such as supporting justice for Palestinians or opposing Zionism as a form of nationalism, are, on the face of it, antisemitic.”
“We have removed it from our website and are reviewing all other materials,” James said. “All Pennsylvania students deserve to feel safe at school and learn in environments where their rights, identities and differences are respected.”
Though the document was dated 2023, and Shapiro took office in January 2023, James told JNS that the guide was developed under former governor Tom Wolf’s administration.
James told JNS that Shapiro “has made clear, antisemitism must be confronted and condemned with moral clarity wherever it occurs.” The Jewish Democratic governor has been a target of antisemitic violence, when the governor’s mansion was set on fire in April 2025.
The department “is committed to working with schools across Pennsylvania to ensure that all students learn in safe, inclusive environments,” she said.
