In a short while, Secretary of State for Education, @LucyMPowell will present the Sir David Bell review into antisemitism in schools and colleges. This review is billed as the 'Independent review into antisemitism in schools and colleges'. I've spoken to a number of individuals and organisations that submitted evidence to the Bell Review when the call for views from people with relevant lived experience, knowledge or expertise of antisemitism in schools and colleges went out earlier this year. A number of them have gotten back to me to relay their horror and dismay that the review seems overly focussed on issues such as the presence of Palestine solidarity badges and other imagery in schools rather than the multitude of clear examples where Jewish students have been targeted with antisemitic abuse, discrimination and hatred. It appears that the review is coming down hard on expressions of Palestine solidarity while being rather light on pupils who do Hitler salutes or make jokes about Jews and money. Having done a little research I do also have some serious concerns as to the impartiality of this review and also the recommendation that schools adopt the IHRA definition of antisemitism despite it not being possible to make this compulsory, nor is it legally actionable. If we care about tackling antisemitism in society, ensuring we get to it where it manifests in our schools and among young people, then we need to put a stop to the weaponisation of antisemitism and its use for political football where Israel-Palestine is concerned. This review is fundamentally biased, ideological, and linked to efforts to tie Jewish identity with support for Israel while suppressing pro-Palestine expression as 'antisemitic' and intimidating for Jews. The reality of course is that young Jews in the UK are way more intimidated and frightened by their classmates doing Hitler salutes, making jokes about the Holocaust, doing gas sounds towards them because they're Jewish, being physically assaulted for being Jewish, being bullied and isolated for being Jewish, being sexually assaulted (reports of kids demanding to see the circumcised penis of a Jewish school child in year 8), and all the other antisemitic shit that is happening in our schools. I'm also reminded of what we learned from the documentary film @IsraelismFilm about the efforts to indoctrinate young Jews into seeing Israel as integral to their identity as Jews, that when Israel is criticised they are being personally attacked as Jews, and that they can only see themselves as Jewish if they support and love Israel. Anyway, below are some very serious issues relating to Sir David Bell, his lack of impartiality, and the failure to declare vested interests of himself and a number of those on the reference group: - David Bell's role as a permanent secretary at the department of education was not disclosed as a conflict of interest. - David Bell is named on the national council of the 'National Study Group', an educational charity, that in its mission statement says that its goal is to "initiate or expand active links and research collaboration between academics, specialists and centres-of-excellence in the UK and their counterparts in Israel." The ASG is "primarily a UK-Israel operation" and rather worryingly the "only issue on which ASG has firm policy is opposition to BDS. The Charity is totally committed to the universality of knowledge and rejects any disruption to cross-national co-operation." - The ASG, of which Sir David Bell is named as a member of national council, provides educational talks about Israel to schools. - Executive director of the ASG, John D.A. Levy, is on the advisory board of Academic Friends of Israel and a separate charity, the friends of Israel educational foundation. - The Friends of Israel Educational Foundation carries out hundreds of school talks in the UK. 1/?