Student lifts lid on alleged anti-Semitism at ‘alternative learning’ school
A Jewish student has spoken out about horrific incidents of alleged anti-Semitism at an ‘alternative learning’ Sydney school.
A Jewish student has lifted the lid on alleged anti-Semitic behaviour at an “alternative learning” school on Sydney’s upmarket North Shore, with incidents including swastika graffiti, death threats and students calling for their Jewish counterparts to be “separated”.
The allegations were reported to NSW Education Minister and Deputy Premier Prue Car, whose department said it had “no tolerance” for religious discrimination and it had investigated each report of vilification.
Lindfield Learning Village is an unorthodox public school that discards uniforms and bells, gets students to call teachers by their first names, and bases learning on a child’s stage rather than their age.
It caused uproar in 2021 when students displayed posters including “stop killer cops, (get) pigs out of the country, and white lives matter too much”.
In June, one Jewish student wrote to the government seeking help about an “alarming rise in anti-Semitic incidents in North Shore high schools”.
“Anti-Semitism has spread and no matter how much we complain and ask for help, (schools) don’t do anything about it,” the letter reads.
“We are so tired and don’t know what to do anymore.”
The Lindfield student alleged “anti-Semitic harassment”, which had “gotten worse by the day”, and family members told that “Jews deserve to die” and they needed “to be gassed”.
The student alleged their peer was told “you (Jewish people) need to be separated from normal people like us”.
“My Jewish friends at a nearby school had students shouting ‘all the Jews get off the bus’,” the pupil said, adding that they didn’t “feel safe”.
“Kill the Jews” was scrawled in German on one of Lindfield’s walls, while pictures of swastikas were drawn onto others and carved into trees.
A department director apologised to the student for the “distress” caused, revealing that she had raised the allegations with Lindfield’s relieving principal, who had brought up the matter at whole staff meetings and with the school’s executive.
The school has an anti-racism officer, staff have completed the department’s anti-racism policy training and they have a multi-term plan to combat religious discrimination, particularly anti-Semitism, which it was taking extremely seriously.
A NSW Education spokesman said its schools had “no tolerance” for religious discrimination, and that reports of anti-Semitism were fully investigated, with students disciplined if they were found to have acted inappropriately.
It recently launched a religious intolerance helpline for students who had experienced or seen religious bullying, coming into effect in November.
Lindfield Learning Village has sought advice from the NSW Jewish Board of Deputies and police, and has been working with the area’s faith leaders.
NSW JBD president David Ossip said the allegations were “extremely serious” and he continued to liaise with the Deputy Premier and the department.
“It is essential that students are able to attend school in a safe and inclusive environment, free from hate and discrimination,” he said.
Cases of anti-Semitism, however, are not contained to Lindfield, with similar allegations raised at nearby Killara, Davidson and St Ives high schools.
The alleged incidents were put to Ms Car during a recent budget estimates hearing, and she said she remained “concerned” about anti-Semitism across the school system.
“I’m appalled (at the allegations) … I don’t think anyone can say that their response would be anything but ‘that is disgusting’,” she said, adding she “engaged constantly” with faith leaders.
NSW opposition education spokeswoman Sarah Mitchell said she was “horrified” and called for “tangible steps” to prevent it happening again.
NSW Davidson MP Matt Cross said it was “deeply concerning” that Jewish students didn’t feel safe at school.
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