This week has been the most heart-wrenching I have spent so far as editor of the Jewish Chronicle. I am a parent of a student at Blue Valley North. I didn’t just write about the incident between “our school” and the “other school,” I heard about it from my close circle of friends who also have children in the school system.
I learned a lot and not just about anti-Semitism. I’ve thought for a while now that this generation of teens has no respect for each other and I saw that first-hand through posts on Facebook. Foul language is common. I’ve been told it’s easy to attack people on social media because it’s relatively anonymous. You don’t have to look at the person you are saying downright horrible things to or about.
The incident I’m speaking about was a skit students at Blue Valley Northwest presented to make fun of the Jewish students at Blue Valley North. (See full news story) Many believe the skit was anti-Semitic. One Jewish student who participated in the skit has apologized and said he now believes it was out of line. Other Jewish students at BVNW don’t see anything wrong with the skit. Their “I’m loyal to my school” attitude appears to be more important to them, and the outside world that has seen their pronouncements, than being loyal to their religion and Jewish heritage. Can’t these students be loyal to their school but admit that a mistake was made in this case? It was shocking to see the posts from Jewish kids on Facebook and television defending the skit.
This reminds me of what happened in Nazi Germany. Wasn’t it common for a lot of Jews in Germany to believe that they were German first and Jewish second, therefore believing that they were safe and nothing could possibly happen to them? We all know how that turned out.
I’m not suggesting this incident comes anything close to the Holocaust. But the Holocaust did become a part of this debate, at least on Facebook. One girl ranted that she didn’t understand why Jewish people continue to talk about the Holocaust. She believes nobody still living could be affected by what she obviously believes is ancient history. We know that’s not true either. So it’s apparent to me that agencies like the Midwest Center for Jewish Education have their work cut out to continue to make the Holocaust relevant to young people living in 2012.
The Jewish Community Relations Bureau|American Jewish Committee should also be thanked for stepping in to help diffuse the situation.
After talking to a lot of parents and students, I agree that this situation may have been blown a bit out of proportion. But it still shouldn’t be taken lightly. Warning sirens should be going off that this generation doesn’t know what anti-Semitism is. Maybe parents and teachers don’t understand it either. And they should, especially the adults who are supposed to be in charge. Heil Hitler salutes, which supposedly were made at a basketball game last year, should never be used as a joke. That should have raised flags with administrators immediately. I’m told it did and administrators handled it on a case by case basis. Will more discussions take place now? The district says they will. I hope they follow through.
As I said earlier, I can be counted as a Jewish member of the Blue Valley North family. At some point I think we, the Jewish community, have to shoulder at least a little of the blame for this “joke.” We let our children joke about the school, calling it “Jew Valley North.” I’ve heard parents say it also. It’s not funny. It leads to incidents just like the one we’re all abuzz about right now. As parents we need to make it clear to our children that we should NEVER say anything that we would not want to hear from other people, especially non-Jewish people. And if you think the phrase “Jew Valley North” is harmless, I urge you to re-think those thoughts and take it out of your vocabulary.
This incident brought to light a lot of hatred. It wasn’t just hatred aimed at Jews. It was hatred aimed at other human beings. The students at BVN are not blameless here. They have said horrible things as well, alluding to suicide and drug use. None of those comments are funny, either.
It’s clear to me the school district has a big problem on its hands, and most likely other school districts do also. It has to educate all those involved, especially the teachers and administrators who should have already learned these lessons, the difference between good clean fun and unnecessary attacks. Clearly these kids have no respect for each other. The district had a virtues program when my children were young, but it apparently doesn’t go far enough to teach these children — teens now who will eventually become our community’s leaders — that words and actions do hurt. It’s not just a saying, it’s the truth. Kindness is Contagious! Catch It!
