Harriton High changed plans for talk by Syrian refugee after parents raised antisemitism concerns

At the invitation of a Middle Eastern student club, Omar Alshogre, a Syrian refugee, was set to speak Monday at Harriton High School about his imprisonment by the Assad regime.

But rather than an evening event open to the public, as the club had previously advertised, Alshogre’s talk was moved to lunchtime. Attendance was limited to Harriton students, according to parents.

Lower Merion School District officials did not respond to questions about the shifted plans, but parents say Harriton’s principal directed the changes after fielding complaints that Alshogre had expressed anti-Israel and antisemitic views.

The episode — along with a recent student-organized conference that parents say featured speakers affiliated with pro-Palestinian groups — fueled renewed protest from Jewish parents in Lower Merion, who have been accusing the district of failing to adequately address antisemitism. Other parent critics said the district had bowed to pressure from Jewish parents in modifying Alshogre’s talk and are accusing the district of limiting free speech.

Calling the events “a continuation of a troubling pattern,” parent Kim Lipetz told the Lower Merion school board at a meeting Monday that the district had “a concerning tolerance for antisemitism.”

Dafna Ofer told the board that Alshogre — invited to speak by Harriton’s MENASA club for Middle Eastern students — had “openly and publicly expressed anti-Israel and antisemitic views,” and that “Jewish parents and students raised urgent concerns, but our voices were ignored.”

She also said the district had “conveniently omitted” biographical details about speakers at an April 22 Students Advocating for Greater Equality (SAGE) conference titled “Resistance 101,” including that Lower Merion alumni who participated in a panel discussion were affiliated with the groups Jewish Voice for Peace and Students for Justice in Palestine.

“There is growing mistrust between the Jewish community and administration and board,” Ofer said.

In a statement provided by a district spokesperson, Superintendent Frank Ranelli declined to respond to specific questions about the events. But he said they “align with the district’s strategic plan pathway of Student-Driven Schools and with District Policy 235" recognizing public school students’ constitutional right to freedom of expression.

“The policy further states, ‘The board respects the right of its students to express themselves in word or symbol,’” Ranelli said.

He did not address how or whether the district had initially approved Alshogre to speak, who decided to change the terms of his appearance, and who was ultimately allowed to attend the speech.

A Muslim parent in the district said Harriton’s principal had directed the MENASA club to remove a flier advertising the event after fielding complaints from Jewish parents. The principal also dictated that the event be switched to the school’s Lunch and Learn period, rather than in the evening, she said.

The parent, who requested anonymity to avoid repercussions for her child, called the district’s actions a form of “viewpoint discrimination.” She said that she was not sure what Alshogre was accused of saying that was antisemitic, but that he was invited by MENASA “solely to speak about his lived experience as a prisoner of the Assad regime and his criticisms of that regime.”

The Lower Merion Jewish Families Association said Alshogre had previously made statements “accusing Israel of genocide and voicing support for campus protests many in our community view as hostile and exclusionary.”

“While we were told he would not speak on Israel or Gaza, the broader issue is that his presence signals a climate in which Jewish students may feel unsafe, targeted, or marginalized,” the association said in a statement to The Inquirer.

The JFA also objected to the “Resistance 101″ event, where a speaker “who was told not to speak about her affiliation” with Jewish Voice for Peace “did in fact let the students know her role and about her protesting practices.”

Some Jewish parents expressed frustration that in response to concerns about Alshogre, Harriton’s principal initially restricted attendance to student club members. Then — after objections to closing it off — he said all Harriton students could attend, according to parents.

Rather than addressing parents’ concerns, the district “sent the awful message that there are Jewish parents who don’t want his story told,” parent Lisa Prosnitz told the school board.

Prosnitz said that the district needs to teach better “critical thinking,” and that students should understand why having a representative of Students for Justice in Palestine speak at a conference “is a problem.” She said that while the government of Israel’s actions are one matter, “the existence of Israel has no right to be questioned.”

Allegations of antisemitism have been a frequent topic at Lower Merion school board meetings since the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas attacks on Israel, as parents have voiced concerns about antisemitic incidents in schools. During debate around the district’s equity policy last fall, Jewish families objected to remarks by the board’s lone Black member contrasting anti-Black racism with the experience of Jews, who she said “chose to be white.”

Those tensions flared again Monday, as some parents noted they came from families of Holocaust survivors and said they were members of a vulnerable minority.

They also reiterated criticism that antisemitism training provided by the district — which has partnered with the Weitzman National Museum of American Jewish History and the Jewish Community Relations Council — is insufficient.

And while the district has adopted the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s definition of antisemitism — which includes “denying the Jewish people their right to self-determination” — some parents said the district has failed to provide guidance to administrators and teachers on how to implement it.

They also accused the MENASA club of excluding Israeli students — saying the club does not include the Israeli flag and noting a social media post with a watermelon, often used as a pro-Palestinian symbol.

District officials did not address questions about the MENASA club Wednesday.

Ahmet Selim Tekelioglu, executive director of CAIR-Philadelphia, said critics of the MENASA group demonstrated “some of the worst traits of counterproductive voices that have marred many school board meetings across the nation.”

“These angry and loud voices accused students without listening to them, they denied them the opportunity to learn and evolve through their work, and they tried to exert their vigilantism and restrictive understandings as facts,” said Tekelioglu, who said he spoke Wednesday to people affiliated with the club.

Tekelioglu said that “many Muslim and non-Muslim pro-justice families and students no longer feel safe“ at school board meetings.

The Muslim parent who requested anonymity said adults had been combing student-run social media to point out posts they considered antisemitic, leaving students feeling targeted.

She said that like Jewish students, Muslim students had experienced bullying in Lower Merion schools and felt ignored.

“The difference between these two communities is for Muslim Americans, we expect the government not to protect us,” the parent said. The district has made clear its commitment to fighting antisemitism, she said, and “their kids deserve to be protected. But so do ours.”