Rantz: Communist Seattle teacher breaks silence to support Hamas, claim ‘ACAB’
Jan 30, 2024, 5:00 AM

Headshot of Chief Sealth High School teacher Ian Golash against a backdrop of Chief Sealth High School. (Photos courtesy of Seattle Public Schools District)
(Photos courtesy of Seattle Public Schools District)
A controversial, communist teacher in Seattle broke his silence after exclusive stories of his conduct earned international scorn and mockery. Now, he’s openly defending Hamas terrorism and attacking police. It should alarm parents who have kids in his class.
Chief Sealth High School teacher Ian Golash went into digital hiding when The Jason Rantz Show exclusives went viral. The Ethnic Studies World History teacher failed a student on a quiz after declaring men can’t get pregnant. He then declared to his class that the sexual identity “straight” is offensive because it deems non-straight people as “crooked.” And, he was reportedly investigated for using antisemitic curriculum grossly misrepresenting the Israel-Gaza conflict, painting Israel as the aggressor, and whitewashing Palestinian terrorism.
After the stories brought unwanted attention, Golash turned his public Facebook profile to private. But over the weekend, he went public again. He posted seven thoughts about where he stands ideologically, presumably to clear up misconceptions. But they did the opposite. They confirmed he holds radical and dangerous views that some parents say are bleeding into the classroom.
Defending Hamas rape and murder
One post shows support for Hamas, arguing they can “defend” Gaza how they wish. That presumably includes the rape and beheadings from October 7.
“Yes, I believe that Palestinians are people who deserve to live free from an oppressive occupation. I believe that the state of Israel has oppressed the Palestinian people as a group, in one form or another, continuously since the first Nakba in 1948. Also, Israel is currently committing genocide in Gaza,” Golash declared. “Yes, I believe that resistance against colonialism–and yes I believe Israel is a settler colonial state – and all forms of oppression are justified. People who are being oppressed get to decide what forms of resistance works best for them, not me or anyone else — especially not the oppressors.”
Golash’s beliefs are not based in reality. But he presents them as true to students, according to one parent speaking to The Jason Rantz Show on KTTH. His terrifying and objectively ignorant views, in part, are represented in his antisemitic curriculum provided by Qatar-owned Al Jazeera.
Seattle, WA – we are extremely disturbed to see Chief Sealth High School teacher and socials studies department chair Ian Golash deny the brutal rape and savagery of Hamas.
Imagine being a Jewish student or colleague of this man.
Ian Golash is a rape denier …
— StopAntisemitism (@StopAntisemites)
‘ACAB’
Golash, who is part of a $10 million settlement with the city of Seattle after claiming he was injured as police responded to the 2020 rallies and riots, also declared that “all cops are bastards” (ACAB). A common chant amongst Antifa and their allies is “ACAB.”
“This is a political statement. It makes no condemnation of any person who chooses to be a police officer. It speaks of the institution of law enforcement. It understands the role of the police as protectors of wealth, property and the status quo, and acknowledges the racist origins of policing in the United States. It understands laws as threats of violence and police as the purveyors of that violence,” he wrote.
Though Golash appears to reject proactive policing curbs crime, he said police “only respond to it.”
“We don’t need police to protect us from one another. We need to build systems that provide for the needs of all of us so that we don’t work to harm one another to get our needs met, or harm one another because our needs are not being met,” he said.
More from Jason Rantz: Seattle Police leaders accuse OPA head of altering finding against officer
Communist and anti-capitalist
By arguing that capitalism “has been disastrous, and continues to be disastrous for billions of people around the world,” Golash declares he is a communist.
“I believe there must be a better way to organize society than doing it around the pursuit of profit, which has created billionaires just as it has created abject poverty,” he said. “I don’t pretend to know what the better way is, only that it surely exists and that if we could organize society around working to meet the needs of everyone instead of producing the most profit, we would take a big step towards a world that I envision as a communist.”
Parents speaking to The Jason Rantz Show on KTTH worry that Golash brings his fringe political views into the classroom. One post indicates he does just that.
“Yes, I believe that systems of power like racism, patriarchy and capitalism distribute power in a way that harms many people through structural violence,” he admitted. “Iand [sic] that if we are to build towards a world where less people are harmed, we have to understand these systems and how they function. And yes, I believe that is one role of Ethnic Studies classes.
“Yes, I believe that school is a safe place to learn to grapple with your own social identities and what they may mean for you in your life,” he continued. “Yes, I believe that conversations around controversial issues can sometimes be messy and even harmful but that they still need to be had.”
Seattle Public Schools is silent
Spokespersons for Seattle Public School (SPS) declined an opportunity to provide comment. It’s not the first time they’ve remained silent when it comes to criticisms of its radical educators. But the silence is not merely irresponsible; it indicates that SPS condones Golash’s views being expressed in the classroom.
Reasonable parents would be right to question the appropriateness of these views being expressed in the classroom, even if they were approached by offering both sides of different arguments. Though, it strains credulity to think Golash provides honest framing and discussion around views he doesn’t hold.
One would be just as reasonable to question whether or not some of these positions should ±ð±¹±ð°ùÌýbe discussed in the classroom. Who can defend the October 7 terrorist attack? Even staunchly antisemitic critics will at least offer a throwaway line condemning the attacks.
Golash isn’t someone who should be in a classroom based on his conduct and radical views. It’s hard to believe left-wing parents and woke administrators would sit by quietly if an educator was a Proud Boy. But they won’t say much here because they agree with Golash. That should be a wake-up call to either pull your kids from public schools in Seattle, as scores have already done, or be ready to deprogram the propaganda thrust upon them in the classroom every day by an authority figure they may not want to disappoint or cross.
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