"UTLA express our solidarity with the Palestinian people and call for Israel to end bombardment of Gaza and stop displacement at Sheikh Jarrah," the resolution read.
UTLA is the second largest teachers' union in the US, consisting of eight areas, three of which voted to put forth the resolution to its 250-member House of Representatives decision-making body.
"We mourn the loss of every innocent child that has been caught in the middle of this conflict. We deplore the destruction of schools on both sides and the need to convert places of learning into emergency shelters to house displaced people," the Union wrote in its Middle East statement justifying its concern following the flare up in violence during the 11-day Gaza-Israel fighting.
"Since 2005 over 170 Palestinian organizations of civil society including educator unions have—modeled on the movement to end South African apartheid—asked the international community to join the campaign to boycott, divest, and call for sanctions against Israel," UTLA added.
UTLA said it has a "special responsibility to stand in solidarity with the Palestinian people," since 3.8 billion tax dollars go to Israel annually, "thus directly using our tax dollars to fund apartheid and war crimes.”
The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) responded to UTLA in a letter expressing its concern regarding the resolution and its "extremely one-sided view of the conflict between Israel and Hamas," which it said could isolate Jewish and Israel supporters among its students or staff, as well as have an affect on school campuses.
ADL pointed out that due to the global and US rise in antisemitic attacks this past month in the wake of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, it "would hope that the leaders and membership of a body tasked with educating all children in our public school community would not take such a potentially divisive stance."
The Jewish Federation of Los Angeles also denounced UTLA's actions, posting on twitter that "“It is inappropriate and unacceptable for UTLA to promote a one-sided position on a complex geopolitical issue that is far removed from the day to day public education in our schools, among our teachers, our students and their families."
The federation warned that such a resolution would alienate members and Jewish students in Los Angeles schools and make them feel unsafe.U.S. government to cut all aid to Israel. The Jewish Federation of Greater Los Angeles strongly opposes this resolution. Thank you to all those involved in supporting the right for our Jewish community to feel safe, heard, and welcome. (2/2) pic.twitter.com/cUyPSeWtQu
— Jewish Federation of Greater Los Angeles (@JFedLA) June 7, 2021
"Now more than ever, it is wrong for any part of UTLA to take a stance on an issue that will cause personal harm, foster hate, and alienate so many people," the federation tweeted.
It thanked the teachers who opposed the motion.
UTLA responded to the concern in antisemitic behavior in it's Middle East statement, announcing that it "stands against racism, sexism, anti-Semitism, xenophobia, homophobia, Islamophobia, and oppression in all forms. We stand against both anti-Jewish hate and violence and anti-Arab hate and violence wherever they occur, and we denounce the recent attacks on Jewish people in Los Angeles.”
While there was much outcry against the motion, pro-Palestinian groups applauded the UTLA's stance.
The Palestinian Youth Movement's LA division praised the UTLA for making a "decisive moral stance against Israel’s ethnic cleansing of the Palestinian people" and adding "their voices to the growing tide of public support for Palestinian liberation," The Los Angeles Times reported.
Al-Awda: The Palestine Right to Return Coalition responded as well, calling UTLA's resolution a way to "educate on this very peaceful way to protest what’s happening in Palestine,” referring to BDS as a peaceful solution to address "oppression and occupation that’s been going on for 73 years," The Los Angeles Times added.