Letter to CESJDS Leadership

Dear Rabbi Malkus and Rabbi Bellas:

We are a group of concerned parents and supporters in the CESJDS community who believe in partnering with CESJDS to teach our children empathy, kindness, compassion and inclusivity—informed by Jewish values. As parents, we also believe there are certain topics that are so personal, delicate, and complex that they are best addressed by parents and families.

Gender identity is one of these deeply sensitive topics, and we recognize that there are diverse perspectives about this issue amongst the parent community—and among the signatories of this letter. We are uncomfortable with the lower school’s planned lessons about gender identity and, for varying reasons, do not consent to our young children attending those lessons.

The coordinated response to our concerns—that we should remove our children from school on the day this lesson is taught, promotes exclusion and does not model empathy, kindness or inclusivity. We are particularly troubled by the school’s reversal from last year, when it provided alternative options for families who chose not to participate. While sending children to Wonders was an imperfect solution, it was at least an attempt to accommodate families with differing viewpoints. We expected a refined and improved approach this year that would allow our children to learn the important middah of Acts of Loving Kindness together with their classmates and without interruption. Instead, the school has sent a troubling signal about its lack of commitment to inclusivity by refusing to hear our perspective and denying any accommodations whatsoever to families who want to explore other ways of teaching Acts of Loving Kindness.

As JDS parents, alumni, and supporters, we share a concern that by failing to foster a welcoming environment for all families on this issue, the school is not meeting its stated commitment to inclusivity, diversity and pluralism. We invite you to reconsider your approach and show our children through action what it means to be a kehila that is meaningfully committed to the core values we cherish and teach.

Respectfully,