Unpacking the bizarre case of Alexandra Lulka vs. the TDSB

On Wednesday evening, the Toronto District School Board held a lengthy meeting to take a vote over whether to censure trustee Alexandra Lulka. Lulka—who is Jewish—took to Twitter to voice her concerns over some teaching material being passed around by a pro-Palestinian teacher and activist. The materials linked to the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, listed as a terrorist organization by the Canadian government, and legitimized suicide bombings.

But while the TDSB staffer behind the inflammatory materials, Javier Dávila, was briefly suspended, Lulka's censure was more surprising—and caused widespread outrage across Toronto's Jewish community and provincial politicians.

The convoluted controversy came to a head at Wednesday's board meeting, where Lulka won the vote, other trustees criticized the debacle and one member asked aloud if the TDSB could get away with doing nothing at all.

What we talked about:

• Read the investigation report about Lulka here
• Read "Toronto school board trustee Alexandra Lulka criticized for calling out antisemitic teaching resources" at thecjn.ca

Credits

The CJN Daily is written and hosted by Ellin Bessner (@ebessner on Twitter). Victoria Redden is the producer. Michael Fraiman is the executive producer. Our theme music is by Dov Beck-Levine. Our title sponsor is Metropia. We're a member of The CJN Podcast Network; find more great Jewish podcasts at thecjn.ca.