“I am deeply disturbed by the discovery of the anti-Semitic ‘human swastika’ at Branham High School,” said California State Sen. Dave Cortese (D-15) in a Monday statement.
Here’s the background on how this offensive, allegedly criminal display at a South San Jose school went viral – and its place in the growing trend of bigoted displays in the U.S.
According to SFGATE, the San Jose Police Department said in an email the crime occurred on Dec. 3 and that it received a report about it two days later. As of Monday, the department was actively investigating the incident.
In a photo that circulated online, eight students can be seen laying on the school’s football field, forming a swastika symbol. This symbol was used by genocidal dictator Adolf Hitler and the Nazi party in Germany. When Hitler and the Nazis were in power, they systemically murdered 6 million Jewish people as well as millions of others, a genocide called the Holocaust.
KNTV-TV and the Los Angeles Times reported that the original social media post also had an antisemitic 1939 quote from Hitler. Branham High School Principal Beth Silbergeld said in a statement sent to the San Francisco Chronicle Sunday that the school began investigating when the post was shared via an anonymous tip line on Dec. 3.
“The post and the account were reportedly removed from Instagram on Friday morning,” the Chronicle said.
Silbergeld filed a police report. She told SFGATE that post was “a disturbing and unacceptable act of antisemitism.” Though the principal also told the outlet that the students in the photo have been identified, she said they can’t be named publicly because of federal law.
“In addition to filing a police report, Silbergeld said she plans to collaborate with the Anti-Defamation League, the Bay Area Jewish Coalition and the Jewish Community Relations Council of the Bay Area to respond to the photo and ‘work to repair the harm caused,’” SFGATE reported. “The school is also implementing ‘educational approaches to help students understand the history of the Holocaust and impact of hate symbols, hate speech, and antisemitism,’ she added.”
The Jewish Community Relations Council of the Bay Area confirmed this collaboration in a Monday Facebook post.
“The school administration has been open to hearing our series of recommendations on how the school can most effectively educate about the harm caused by this incident of antisemitism and bring healing to both the school community and the larger Jewish community,” the post said. “Given Principal Beth Silbergeld’s swift initial response to this incident, we are hopeful that Branham’s administration will move forward in taking action on both our short and long term recommendations. We will continue to update the Jewish community regarding this matter.”
According to a Tuesday statement from the Bay Area Jewish Coalition, the “brazen public display of Nazi symbols,” in the post “has shaken Jewish families across Northern California and beyond.” It also said that the crime was “not an isolated incident.”
“Over the past two years, the BAJC has received and addressed approximately 500 antisemitic incidents in local K-12 schools, including several at Branham and other high schools in this district,” the statement added. “The sharp uptick in antisemitic incidents mirrors a larger trend documented throughout the country and California in particular: the FBI’s 2023 hate-crime report shows that 60% of all religiously motivated hate crimes in the United States targeted Jews, even though Jews make up just 2% of the U.S. population.”
Results of a study released by the Anti-Defamation League in 2023 also found that a widespread belief in anti-Semitic tropes had reached rates “unseen for decades,” per an Audacy report. Schools also became a more likely location for hate crimes – increasing from the fourth most likely place where hate crimes occur in the U.S. to the third from 2021 to 2022 – data released data from the Federal Bureau of Investigation last year showed.
Elon Musk, who was a close advisor to President Donald Trump at the start of his term earlier this year and the leader of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) initiative, faced backlash after sharing a post on X that mentioned Hitler this March.
“Stalin, Mao, and Hitler didn’t murder millions of people. Their public sector employees did,” said the post.
This August, new findings published by the FBI showed that religiously motivated hate crime incidents have increased year-over-year, with incidents targeting Jews rising at a faster pace than the national average, the American Jewish Committee noted. It said anti-Jewish hate crimes are reaching record highs. Audacy reported not even two months earlier on a California coffee shop that was sued by the U.S. Department of Justice over allegations that its owners and staff discriminated against Jewish clients.
“Leaders of every kind – teachers, law enforcement officers, government officials, business owners, university presidents – must confront antisemitism head-on,” said AJC CEO Ted Deutch in August.
Robert Bravo, superintendent of the Campbell Union High School District, which includes Branham High, told SFGATE in a statement that his office will help the school move forward.
“I find the human swastika posting created by Branham students tremendously alarming. It is unquestionably anti-Semitic and unacceptable,” said Robert Bravo, superintendent of the Campbell Union High School District (which included Branham High) told SFGATE. He said his office will help the school move forward.
Cortese also said “there is absolutely no place for anti-Semitism, or any form of bigotry, in our schools or in our society.”
“As we confront these troubling incidents, we must reaffirm our responsibility to teach younger generations the importance of rejecting hate and standing up for one another,” he added. “Schools should be places where every student feels safe, respected, and supported. That requires intentional education, open dialogue, and the consistent reinforcement of our shared values of diversity, equity, inclusion, and dignity.”
In its statement the Bay Area Jewish Coalition said many local residents “say they no longer feel safe being visibly Jewish, for example, wearing a Star of David necklace, kippah, or placing a menorah in their window during Hanukkah.” Additionally, it said that its research has indicated that students in Bay Area school do not receive adequate education about the Holocaust.
“This leaves them vulnerable to misinformation, historical distortion, and hate-filled content circulating online,” it said.