LAUSD front-runner apologizes for liking antisemitic, pornographic social media posts

Los Angeles school board front-runner Kahllid Al-Alim — who is endorsed by the influential teachers union — is under fire for social media activity that has prompted accusations that he agreed with antisemitic content, glamorized guns and celebrated pornographic images.

A post on X (formerly Twitter) that drew particular criticism was Al-Alim‘s praise of an antisemitic publication from the Nation of Islam organization titled: “The Secret Relationship Between Blacks and Jews: How Jews gained control of the Black American economy.” The book accuses Jews of stealing prosperity from Black people — their “40 acres and a mule” — and of “collaborating with and even financing such racial terrorists as the Ku Klux Klan,” according to a blurb about the book on the Nation of Islam online store.

In an October 2022 post, Al-Alim — running for a seat that represents much of south and southwest Los Angeles — said the book should be mandatory reading in L.A. schools: “We not Burning or Banning Our Future! We Not Playing,” he tweeted.

In a statement Tuesday, Al-Alim, 56, appeared to acknowledge all or most of the social media posts and likes, for which he expressed regret. He did not say they were from fake accounts or that his account was hacked.

“I have spent my life fighting against antisemitism, anti-Arab hate, Islamophobia, and all forms of oppression,” Al-Alim said. “I have spent my life fighting for the equality of all people. There is a very long history of Jewish and Black people backing each other and working in solidarity for justice. I want to continue that important work.”

He also appeared to acknowledge the pornographic and gun-related likes, adding: “I also apologize for my likes on social media of graphic content. It was inappropriate. I will never do that again.”

Al-Alim is among seven candidates running to replace George McKenna, who is retiring from the Board of Education. District 1 includes the core of historically Black Los Angeles and the largest concentration of Black students — and all the candidates are Black. The district also includes a significant number of white voters and Jewish voters; a majority of students attending schools in the district are Latino.

The emergence of Al-Alim’s social media activity threatens to derail the campaign of a parent and longtime community activist who has gained endorsements from the influential United Teachers Los Angeles and the L.A. County Federation of Labor.

California

Your guide to the LAUSD District 1 school board primary election

Seven candidates are vying for the District 1 seat on the Los Angeles Unified School District Board of Education.

Feb. 24, 2024

In figures reported through Wednesday, the teachers union had spent more than $650,000 for an independent campaign in support of Al-Alim and is organizing field workers in his behalf. Al-Alim’s own campaign had raised $24,302 as of the last reporting period.

The next largest independent funding effort is $280,515 on behalf of Didi Watts, by a Sacramento-based political action committee called Kids First. The actual contributors to this campaign are shielded from immediate disclosure because they did not contribute directly to the campaign on Watts’ behalf.

One of the early online amplifiers of Al-Alim‘s social media activity has been political operative Mike Trujillo, who said he is working on behalf of Watts as well as candidates in the three other board races.

But the criticism is not just from those with political motivations to oppose Al-Alim in the District 1 contest.

United Teachers Los Angeles on Tuesday responded sharply to his actions online.

“Kahllid Al-Alim’s reported social media activities are offensive and unacceptable,” the union stated. “They are inconsistent with what we have seen of Kahllid as a decades-long organizer for education justice. Elected leaders should exemplify professionalism and set a positive example for those they represent. His reported social media conduct falls short of these fundamental ideals.”

The union left open the possibility of withdrawing its endorsement: “We have contacted Kahllid Al-Alim to make clear our position on both the content and nature of his posts. We have demanded a public response from him today. UTLA is considering our next steps.”

UTLA sent its statement to The Times at 12:32 p.m. Al-Alim’s sweeping apology arrived eight minutes later.

As of Wednesday afternoon, teachers union leaders were still discussing whether to maintain or withdraw the endorsement — as well as how to go about rescinding support should leaders favor doing so. The UTLA endorsement process is typically complex, involving several steps and many individuals and groups.

The County Fed had not responded as of Wednesday afternoon about whether it would withdraw its endorsement.

But outside political pressure has begun to materialize, including from Assembly Democratic Caucus Chair Rick Chavez Zbur.

“As a gay man — I’ve experienced discrimination firsthand and understand the ugliness of hate in our society all too well,” said Zbur. “This hate has no place in California — and definitely not in our public schools.

“Kahllid Al-Alim’s antisemitic comments are sickening and reflect the opposite of the welcoming, inclusive learning environment we ought to have at LAUSD. That’s why I call on Mr. Al-Alim to withdraw from the race for LAUSD Board.”

In an ad in the Feb. 16 edition of the locally published Jewish Journal, the group Democrats for Israel — Los Angeles designated Al-Alim as a candidate to oppose, a negative assessment that was applied to one other candidate in a long list of endorsements. Within the teachers union, the Educators Caucus for Israel, which goes by the handle @JewTLA, also has come out strongly against Al-Alim, as in this reference to the post that Al-Alim renounced on Tuesday:

“Here’s just a taste of the antisemitic Jew-hating crud @KahllidA posts on his personal account — wacky conspiracy theories about Jews running the world and ruining it.”

Aside from his general apology, Al-Alim specifically retracted his boosting of the Nation of Islam book.

“I want to apologize for my posts about the Farrakhan book,” said Al-Alim, referring to that group’s leader, Louis Farrakhan. “I was wrong. I have connected with educators and community members and have since learned about the issues. I fully rescind that post. It has no place in our schools.”

By early this week, Al-Alim’s personal account on X had gone private, then it was deleted entirely.

Critics also highlighted an image of a “like” they say they found on Al-Alim’s campaign account that was posted shortly after the Oct. 7 start of the Israel-Hamas war. The tweet portrayed the Hamas attack on Israel as Palestinians rising up against occupation, apartheid and ethnic cleansing. It cannot be found at this time on that account.

The original post was from J-Town Action & Solidarity, self-described as a “grassroots collective dedicated to revolutionary organizing & building community power in Little Tokyo.” The image of Al-Alim’s like was captured by multiple critics before it was apparently recently deleted.

Except for the one example he cited, Al-Alim was not specific about any other post that the critics found.

According to an internationally accepted definition, it is not necessarily antisemitic to express support for Palestinians or criticism of Israel or Zionism, the movement to establish and sustain a Jewish homeland in Israel. However, such views can cross the line into antisemitism.

The unrelated, sexually oriented likes include at least one explicit image of sex and many suggestive photos. In one, a woman in a see-through halter top is holding a high-powered gun. The images began to surface over the weekend — supplied by political opponents as well as Jewish critics and union members concerned about the union’s support of Al-Alim.

Al-Alim has a long history as a community activist, including as a founding member of Reclaim Our Schools L.A., a coalition of parents, students, educators, labor and community organizations that is closely allied with the L.A. teachers union.

He also was a longtime member of the school district’s task force on African American achievement and Advanced Placement and a leader on the Hyde Park Neighborhood Council. Currently a janitorial worker for the City of Los Angeles, Al-Alim also worked as an Army medic for 16 years.

In a recent campaign forum for District 1, Al-Alim was the candidate who spoke most critically of the performance of Supt. Alberto Carvalho, saying the district leader merited a grade of F for his work to date.