NYC schools chancellor testifies about antisemitism before Congress. Watch the tense exchanges.
NEW YORK -- New York City Schools Chancellor David Banks was grilled about antisemitism in schools Wednesday during a contentious hearing on Capitol Hill.
Banks was joined by school leaders from California and Maryland. He was the first to speak, delivering opening remarks about the work he said is being done to combat antisemitism.
"Keeping schools safe is in my DNA. When antisemitism rears its head, I believe we must respond, and we have. We have removed, disciplined, or are in the process of disciplining at least a dozen staff and school leaders," Banks said.
Banks said New York City public schools have experienced at least 281 incidents since October 7, and at least 30 students have been suspended. He said 42% of the incidents were antisemitic, and 30% Islamophobic.
"We take every single one of those very, very seriously," he said.
Banks said the NYPD has responded to hate crimes and similar incidents, and the district has engaged dozens of community partners to serve as other forms of leadership.
Watch the full hearing with Banks and other school administrators here.
Contentious hearings on Capitol Hill
The schools chancellor spoke with CBS New York's political reporter Marcia Kramer before the hearing on Capitol Hill, telling her he expected "gotcha" questions from lawmakers Wednesday.
"Reports that we have surfaced that students marched through the halls, disrupting class, and chanting 'Kill the Jews.' One student was caught by a security camera appearing as Hitler performing a Nazi salute," Florida Rep. Aaron Bean said.
Bean, the chairman of the subcommittee, also asked about a phrase that's frequently heard at pro-Palestinian protests.
"Is the phrase 'From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free,' is that antisemitic?" he asked.
"I think that most Jewish people experience that as antisemitic and, as such, it is not allowed in our schools," Banks said.
"It will not stand on my watch"
The toughest questions focused on a demonstration at Hillcrest High School in Queens, the chancellor's alma mater, over a teacher posting a photo with an "I Stand With Israel" sign, along with allegations of antisemitism at Origins High School in Brooklyn.
At one point, Banks was pressed by Congressman Burgess Owens, from Utah, about the Hillcrest incident.
"I'm not sure if you heard clearly from what I said. What I said was very clear. We suspended a number of students who were the leaders at Hillcrest High School, number one. Number two, we removed the principal of that school for a lack of leadership and oversight," Banks replied. "I don't know how to make it much clearer. I condemn, clearly. What happened at Hillcrest was a complete act of antisemitism. It will not stand on my watch. We responded, and I don't know how to make it any clearer."
"Was the principal fired or just transferred to another school?" Owens asked.
"The principal was removed from the school," Banks replied.
"Was he taken to another school?" Owens asked.
"He's not at another school, no. He's not in front of any more children," Banks said.
Questions also came from two New Yorkers: Rep. Brandon Williams of Syracuse, who's facing a tough reelection campaign, and Rep. Elise Stefanik, who is hoping to be Donald Trump's running mate, CBS New York's Marcia Kramer reported.
Williams asked Banks whether the principal is still on school payroll. The chancellor replied, "yes, he is."
"How can Jewish students feel safe at New York City public schools when you can't even manage to terminate the principal of 'Open season on Jews' high school," Williams asked.
"It's not 'Open season on Jews' school. It's called Hillcrest High School. That's the name of the school," Banks said. "Every employee who works in our schools has due process rights, sir. We do not have the authority, to just because I disagree, just terminate someone, that's not the way that it works in our school system."
Stefanik focused on Origins High School and students going through the school chanting "Death to Israel."
"What disciplinary actions have been taken against those students who chanted 'Death to Israel?'" Stefanik asked.
"We have found no evidence that there was any movement through the hall saying 'Death to the Jews,'" Banks said.
Rep. Jamaal Bowman of New York also faces a tough Democratic primary.
"You know how many Black statues there are in the Capitol? Three. Do you know how many confederate statues there are in the Capitol? Twelve," Bowman said. "I work in an institution that teaches hate... yet we're scolding you as educators who have been doing an exemplary job fighting against hate in our schools."
Harvard University's Claudine Gay, University of Pennsylvania's Liz Magill and Massachusetts Institute of Technology's Sally Kornbluth faced tough questions from the same Congressional committee last December, leading to Gay and Magill's resignations. Columbia University President Minouche Shafik was the latest to appear in April, with her testimony prompting a two-week protest on campus that led to hundreds of arrests.
New York leaders react to Banks' testimony
A current Department of Education employee -- who asked to remain anonymous due to fear of retribution -- told CBS New York's Doug Williams that the DOE is not doing enough to condemn antisemitism. She says DOE policies are against suspending students and that Jewish students aren't classified like other races, ethnicities and religions in a way that would protect them from acts of bias and antisemitism.
"I'm really not surprised, and yet appalled, by the response," she said.
The DOE employee says she has received pushback for speaking out about the response to antisemitism.
"There are many, many, many people in positions of authority that believe that the cause is just, in terms of the uprising ... Their situation is seen even as real. It's kind of like, oh, they're exaggerating, Islamophobia is more real than antisemitism," she said.
New York City Councilmember Inna Vernikov, who is a member of the council's Jewish Caucus, says her main point of contention was a lack of discipline when it pertains to what happened at Hillcrest, for example, where the principal was reassigned, not fired.
"When antisemitism and harassment happens under the watch of a principal, how come the principal gets to stay on DOE payroll? If that's the process, the process needs to change," she said.
When asked about that principal on Capitol Hill, Banks said, "Every employee who works in our schools has due process rights, sir."
Williams reached out to both the principals' union and the United Federation of Teachers for comment on the importance of due process and what that means in their respective agreements but did not hear back.
Williams also spoke to the attorney representing a teacher and security guard who say they experienced antisemitism at Origins High School. He said the chancellor did not say enough to correct the record -- after, he says, Banks has questioned the accuracy of what happened at Origins -- to the press.
"It would have been the perfect opportunity to say publicly, 'It shouldn't have happened and we're sorry,' but again, we'll look forward to hearing what they have to say in court," attorney Mark Goldfeder said.
