With more than 185,000 students in public school, Fairfax County contains the largest school district in Virginia… and one of the largest in the country.
And the school board — in the heart of our nation’s capital — has found itself embroiled in controversy.
Board member Abrar Omeshi went viral for urging teachers to avoid mentioning Islamic terrorism in any discussion of the Sept. 11 attacks.
“Be equipped this weekend,” Omeshi tweeted around the 20th anniversary of the attacks. “9/11 is a challenging moment that can bring us towards healing our nation together. Let us honor our heroes by committing to fix & rebuild.”
In the tweet, Omeshi linked a guideline calling for teachers to “take the Arab-Muslim implicit bias test,” a pseudoscientific pursuit.
That’s not all. The guideline even urged teachers to avoid the word “terrorism” entirely — but pushed the term white supremacist.
“There is much disagreement about what terrorism means and it’s often used in a biased manner,” the guideline said. “Instead, use exact terms: white supremacist, surveillance, acts of mass violence.”
There is, in fact, not “much disagreement” about the definition of terrorism. The U.S. criminal code maintains a legal definition of the term. It defines international terrorism as a set of violent, politically motivated crimes that “occur primarily outside the territorial jurisdiction of the United States, or transcend national boundaries.”
Don’t tell the school board!
The guideline forbade other words, too, besides just “terrorism.”
“Avoid the following language: ‘Islamic terrorists,’ ‘jihadists,’ or ‘radical Islamic terrorists.’ This language validates the claims of the 9/11 attackers by associating their acts of mass murder with Islam and Muslims,” the guideline said.
It also offers affirmative advice, in addition to advice on what to avoid.
“Create a safe space,” the guidelines urged. “Wear cultural items from Muslim countries as a show of support (e.g., scarf).”
Omeshi tweeted these guidelines in September 2021, more than a year ago. The tweets resurface after an article by Fox News Digital.
More recently, Omeshi has caused controversy for her comments about the Battle of Iwo Jima.
“Iwo Jima unfortunately happened and set a record for really what, I hate to say, human evil is capable of,” Omeshi said at a meeting last month, according to Fox News Digital.
The rest of the school board has tried to distance itself from Omeshi. In a statement, the board told Fox News Digital that Omeshi was expressing her own view, not the view of the school board.
However, the board issued a resolution remarkably similar to Omeshi’s remarks.
The board began the resolution correctly — by commemorating the 3,000 lost lives, including the lives of three constituents. Then, it condemned thought crimes against Muslims.
“BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that mental health services for the families of victims of September 11, 2001, first responders, military veterans, victims of hate crime and discrimination, and refugees are essential to addressing how these events continue to shape our community,” the board concluded.
“The Fairfax County School Board condemns violence, hate, bigotry, discrimination, and xenophobia in all forms.”
Omeshi herself tweeted that resolution.
Take a look —
Be equipped this weekend.
Parents: https://t.co/1DNcYT42Hk
Educators: https://t.co/atF8fM4i0b9/11 is a challenging moment that can bring us towards healing our nation together. Let us honor our heroes by committing to fix & rebuild.
Alt resolution: https://t.co/RsE0U6r5ee
— Abrar Omeish (@AbrarOmeish) September 11, 2021