As students glorify Adolf Hitler and chant "F*** the Jews,"
DOE accused of empowering antisemitism.
NEW
YORK, May 3, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Today,
Walden Macht & Haran and the
Louis D. Brandeis Center for Human Rights Under Law filed a lawsuit
against Origins High School, the City of
New York, the New York City Department of Education,
David C. Banks, Michael Prayor, John
Banks, and Dara Kammerman on
behalf of a public-school teacher and a campus administrator.
The suit accuses the City and other defendants of failing to
address persistent antisemitism against teachers, including
Plaintiff Danielle Kaminsky, at Origins High School in Sheepshead
Bay, Brooklyn, leading to a
hostile workplace. When the situation got so dangerous that a
campus administrator, Plaintiff Michael Beaudry, demanded action
from DOE, the Defendants are accused of retaliating against him and
removing him from the school.
The suit describes acts of antisemitism and hate speech against
Jewish people generally, and Kaminsky specifically, between
October 8, 2023 and March 2024, which include students marching
through the campus chanting "F*** the Jews", aggrandizing
Adolf Hitler (including referring to
him as the G.O.A.T.), drawing swastikas on a Jewish student's
property, and exclaiming to a Jewish teacher that they "want to
kill all jews." The complaint also details how school
officials, especially Interim Acting Principal Dara Kammerman, sought to shield students from
any disciplinary action, including against a student who brought
explosives to school after engaging in other antisemitic
acts. The complaint alleges that DOE's
complicity caused the antisemitism to fester, and, facing no
consequences, that some students started attacking and assaulting
LGBTQ+ members of the school community.
"It is disgusting that these acts occur at all, let alone in a
public school in the most progressive and enlightened city in the
world. But it is simply shocking that DOE refused to protect
its own people and—worse—retaliated against them to put a lid on
the vile, antisemitic behavior," said Jim Walden, the attorney for Ms. Kaminsky
and Mr. Beaudry. "Sympathizing with hateful behavior only
empowers it, allows it to escalate, and eventually bubble over to
the LGBTQ+ community. This is a case study of how NOT to
handle hate and antisemitism."
With antisemitism on the rise, as cited in the complaint, the
Anti-Defamation League (ADL) notes a 140% increase in 2023 of
antisemitic harassment, vandalism, and assault in the United States. Meanwhile, public school
teachers, sworn to educate the future, were met with inaction by
administrators and the New York
state authorities.
"Above all else, safety must be a school's #1 priority. Yet,
New York City and Origins
officials not only ignored violent, targeted threats, they
attempted a complete cover-up. They shielded dangerous
perpetrators, punished whistleblowers, and left Jewish teachers and
students utterly vulnerable," stated Kenneth L. Marcus, chairman of the Brandeis
Center and former U.S. Assistant Secretary of Education for Civil
Rights. "Dereliction of duty is an understatement here."
The complaint was filed in the United
States District Court for The Eastern District of
New York by Jim Walden, Adam
Cohen, Marc Armas, and
Stephen Gardiner of
Walden Macht & Haran.
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SOURCE Walden Macht & Haran
LLP