Brown, others call state test questions antisemitic
Ari Brown considers two questions on a Regents exam antisemitic, and wants an investigation.
“These are questions that deserve to be answered,” said Brown, a South Shore assembly member who doubles as deputy mayor of Cedarhrust. “I am calling on Inspector General [Lucy] Lang to investigate them immediately to see that justice is served and we have answers.”
The questions are from the Global History and Geography Regents II exam, which asks students about the creation of the State of Israel.
One of the questions under fire asks, “Which historical event most directly influenced the development of the 1947 plan shown on Map A?”
According to the test,the correct answer is the Holocaust.
A second question asks, “Which group benefitted the most from the changes shown” on a set of maps presented to the students that reflect Israel’s territorial borders in 1947, 1949 and 2017.
According to the test, the correct answer is Zionists and Jewish immigrants.
Nine members of New York’s congressional delegation, including Rep. Anthony D’Esposito of the Five Towns, urged Gov. Kathy Hochul and Education Commissioner Betty Rosa to launch an investigation into the creation of the questions.
“The inclusion of the antisemitic question in the New York State Regents Exam in Global History and Geography is unsettling, and demonstrates a startling lack of oversight by the New York State Education Department in reviewing their testing materials,” D’Esposito told the Nassau Herald. “Sadly, proponents of antisemitism continue to use all tools at their disposal to advance their hate-filled ideology as is evidenced by the anti-Israel verbiage included in this winter’s statewide Global History and Geography test.”
“Not only are these Regents’ questions inaccurate, but they are highly offensive to the Jewish population as a whole who have shed blood throughout history for their very right to exist,” Brown said. “Sadly, it was only last year that we passed a law requiring the state to study the efficacy of Holocaust teachings in our schools.”
The State Education Department responded that a diverse group of state social studies teachers prepare, select and review the exam questions.
Research conducted by the Anti-Defamation League last fall found that 21 percent of young adults believe more anti-Israel statements than older adults. And according to the ADL, belief in antisemitic tropes — misrepresentations or fabrications that are defamatory toward Judaism — has risen nearly 25 percent since 2019.
