– New Jersey school district photo Muslim students Jewish group yearbook
– New Jersey school district yearbook photo Muslim Jewish students replaced.
Accident – Death – Obituary News :
By Raja Razek, Mounira Elsamra and Rebekah Riess, CNN
(CNN) — An investigation has been initiated after seniors at East Brunswick High School in New Jersey were shocked to find that the Jewish Student Union photo in their yearbooks had been replaced by a photo of Muslim students, according to the school superintendent.
Superintendent Victor Valeski took to Facebook to address the issue, stating, “We were made aware that in yearbooks, distributed only to Seniors, the Jewish Student Union is accompanied by a photograph that is not associated with them in any way. Additionally, names of members of the Jewish Student Union were not published.”
Following an internal investigation by the superintendent, it was found that there was at least gross negligence in the proof review process before the yearbooks went to print.
East Brunswick Mayor Brad Cohen condemned the incident as a “blatant Anti-Semitic act” and called on school officials to provide answers regarding how the mix-up occurred and who was responsible.
The school board has now engaged private legal counsel to carry out an independent investigation into the matter.
Mayor demands accountability and transparency
Mayor Cohen, in a Facebook post, demanded transparency and accountability from the school officials, urging them to provide a detailed explanation of the incident and ensure that those responsible are held accountable.
An independent group has been appointed by the school board to conduct a thorough investigation into the matter. The private counsel has already begun working on the case, with no specific timeline provided for the completion of the investigation.
Students express anguish over the incident
Expressing regret over the incident, Superintendent Valeski apologised on behalf of the East Brunswick Board of Education for the distress it has caused to the Jewish students and their families. He reiterated the school’s zero-tolerance policy towards bias and assured that all reported instances of antisemitism are thoroughly investigated.
The Jewish Federation in the Heart of New Jersey has demanded accountability and facts following the alterations made to the yearbook photos and names of Jewish students.
Charlotte Friedman, president of the school’s Jewish Club, expressed feeling symbolically erased as a Jewish student, raising concerns about the impact of the incident on the Jewish community.
Meanwhile, Muslim students, whose photo was mistakenly included in place of the Jewish Student Union, have also faced backlash. Zain, a Muslim student, shared the Islamophobic threats he received, expressing solidarity with the Jewish community and condemning the hateful rhetoric directed towards him and his peers.
Path to reconciliation and resolution
As the investigation progresses, seniors have been asked to return their yearbooks so that the erroneous page can be replaced with the correct photo and names of the Jewish Student Union members. The school district is working with the publisher to reproduce the page, with printing already underway.
Underclassmen, who had not yet received their yearbooks, will receive corrected versions with the accurate representation of the Jewish Student Union.
Superintendent Valeski urged the East Brunswick community to allow the investigation to proceed and refrain from premature judgements. He committed to providing updates once all the facts have been gathered and called for support and understanding during this challenging time.
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“New Jersey school district photo Muslim students Jewish group yearbook”.
