The headline in the Huffington Post said that a mother in Tennessee threw a fit when her daughter was “forced” to learn abuot the existence of Islam in a 7th grade social studies class http://huff.to/2dtOkXg . They may take any mention of Islam out of their text books. I’m outraged that this ignorant mother is even allowed to influence education. Education is to learn, not to further small-minded thinking, spread hate and fear and leave people in medieval backwards thinking.

This so-called person was angry that her child is learning about religion other than Christianity. And this person has support from other fools. When I read about stupidity, hate and one person trying to force her religion on the rest of us who are not Christian but who respect Christianity, I can only think that her brand of Christianity is in conflict  with the loving Christians I know.

I’m a diversity and inclusion strategist. I’m a consultant who creates inclusive cultures, and who brings people together  all races, religions, and ethnicities, etc. I’m a person who works with Muslims, Christians, Buddhists, Hindus and Jews. I’m also a Jewish person who works with Palestinians and seeks connection and commonality across almost any difference.

I’m a Jewish person who grew up in New York around a lot of holocaust survivors. I’m a Jewish person who has heard real life stories from Jewish people and others who were kicked out of school and put in concentration camps and  who talked about the people they knew who were put on trains to die in the death camp gas chambers. I’m a Jewish person who doesn’t want this to happen again to anyone. And I’m a Jewish person who knows that ignorance, lack of information and contact leads to dehumanization and makes it easy to kill.

When I read about this disgusting person and see her angry, ignorant face, I feel sorry for her children who will grow up in hate and fear. When I read about this disgusting person and see her angry, ignorant face, I think about the followers or  Hitler who helped torture and kill 6 million Jews, and millions of other people including gay people and Gypsies.

This despicable woman is afraid of Muslims and wants everyone to be her kind of  Christian and dictate her stupidity and hate everyone else. I think of the Muslims who came to the US to flee  ISIS, and counties where there was no freedom.  I see this woman, I hear her words, and I think she is a mini-ISIS who wants to make everyone follow her rules and she gets to decide who is a “good American.”

If Tennessee follows her dictates, I hear glass breaking and feat a new Kristallnact. If we are to be inclusive, if we  believe in diversity and believe in the values of freedom, love and connection, we need to speak out.