The Smithsonian urged them to skip the academic break out of concern for the workshop leader

The Smithsonian’s National Museum of African American History and Culture (NMAAHC) is being urged to avoid withdrawing from the study as the watchdog North American Values ​​Institute (NAVI) expresses “deep concern” about one of the workshop’s leaders.

The University at Buffalo’s Center for K-12 Black History and Racial Literacy Education, directed by Dr. At Garrett King, we are hosting the Social Studies Coordinators Retreat next month, where Ismael Jimenez will facilitate a workshop. Jimenez, who serves as the Director of Social Studies Curriculum for the School District of Philadelphia, has received criticism for his controversial curriculum plans, ties to activist groups and anti-Israel comments.

Retreat materials posted on the University at Buffalo’s website say one of the event’s featured sessions is a “reconstruction workshop with the Freedmen’s Bureau (with NMAAHC).”

“At a time of rising antisemitism, the Smithsonian should not lend its name, staff, or institutional credibility to a K-12 curriculum run in partnership with a teacher with this record. By participating, the Smithsonian risks endorsing the use of black history education as a political vehicle, antisemitism, NAVI’s activism, and reading NAVI’s book.

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In response to Fox News Digital’s request for comment, Jimenez said he viewed the retreat as an opportunity to connect with other teachers.

“I’ve always believed that education requires a certain level of humility. None of us comes to a complete understanding of the world, and part of the job of being a teacher is staying open to learning, thinking and growing,” Jimenez told Fox News Digital.

“That’s why I agreed to host the Social Studies Curriculum Coordinators Retreat. I welcome opportunities to talk with teachers who think deeply about their work and the responsibilities we have to the youth we serve,” he added.

The Smithsonian’s National Museum of African American History and Culture is being urged to withdraw from an educational conference that includes a workshop leader. (Al Drago/Getty Images)

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Jimenez did not directly address NAVI’s criticism of his Israel comments or concerns about his record.

In its letter to the NMAAHC, NAVI noted that Jimenez’s curriculum has drawn scrutiny for its political bias. In the past, this organization has raised the alarm about the controversial curriculum and released a paper that includes it. In this document, NAVI said that “in every unit – in voting, economics, and financial studies, “it directs students to activism rather than asking critical questions.” The group described the curriculum as “a one-sided view, based on the views of the American public.” NAVI said that the curriculum failed to present other views.

Among the examples cited by NAVI were lessons that asked students how they would use “discrimination and integration as lenses” throughout the course. The curriculum also includes economic exercises focusing on wealth inequality and compensation, and an end-of-year project in which students are asked to communicate social issues and develop social action plans.

However, NAVI’s concerns about Jimenez go beyond the curriculum he has built. The organization also pointed to Jimenez’s public comments about Israel, including an incident in which he called the country a “terrorist country.”

The Canary Mission, a watchdog that profiles individuals it deems to be anti-Israel, tracked and compiled Jimenez’s speech about Israel. The website has a screenshot of a Facebook post it says Jimenez uploaded, saying “Israel is a terrorist state # yeahisaidit.” Jimenez’s Canary Mission profile includes a 2014 Facebook post in which he allegedly called Israel a “terrorist-sponsoring apartheid called Israel.”

The agency also has documents attributed to Jimenez that include praise for convicted police killer Assata Shakur and the claim that “all American presidents have consistently used insecurity to advance systemic racism.”

The North American Values ​​Institute is one of the many organizations that have expressed concern about Ismael Jimenez’s speech on Israel. (Selcuk Acar/Anadolu via Getty Images)

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Last year, the Jewish Federation of Greater Philadelphia published an open letter to Jimenez and the School District of Philadelphia, expressing its concern over a video in which the teacher “appears to justify the Hamas-led massacre of Israeli civilians on October 7.”

“Mr. Jimenez, do you believe that the 350+ young people – many of them fighting for peace – who were killed at the Nova Music Festival on October 7 deserve their fate? Do you justify the abduction of civilians, including elderly Holocaust survivors and foreign nationals, taken just for being there?,” the federation wrote.

“This is not about closing differences. It’s about drawing a moral line,” reads the letter, sponsored by other Jewish groups.

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NAVI also noted in its letter that Jimenez founded the Racial Justice Organizing Committee (RJOC), a teacher organization within the School District of Philadelphia. The watchdog group cited the organization’s involvement in fighting Israel as another reason it believes the Smithsonian should not be involved in the withdrawal.

In expressing its concern about Jimenez, NAVI also pointed to his role on the board of the WEB Du Bois Movement School for Abolition and Reconstruction. The organization describes itself as “a political education program for aspiring rebels and movement leaders from those communities most affected by poverty, policing, and mass incarceration.”

NAVI argued that Jimenez’s record raises questions about whether he should help train teachers responsible for shaping the curriculum.

“This concern goes directly to the question of whether Mr. Jimenez should train teachers to shape the K-12 curriculum,” the organization wrote.

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In its letter, NAVI asked the Smithsonian to withdraw its workshop and any institutional support retroactively, clarify that it does not support “political approaches” in K-12 education and review internal procedures for participating in the training of third-party teachers. The organization also urged the Smithsonian to “ensure that state resources are not used to legitimize activists or organizations associated with antisemitism, ideological extremism, or those who facilitate terrorism.”

“The Smithsonian’s educational mission depends on public trust. That trust is undermined when a cultural institution lends credibility to a K-12 curriculum organized by an activist with a history of anti-Israel extremism and antisemitism,” the letter reads.

Fox News Digital reached out to NMAAHC and Dr. King to comment.