Nysmith allegedly allowed antisemetic bullying and expelled the kids who's parents complained

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think that if you have allowed a kid in an elementary school classroom to draw a picture of Hitler as a strong leader - then you should skip hanging the Palestinian flag unless, of course, you want to actually emotionally harm the Jews that attend your school.

I am not Jewish but I don’t see how those two events together don’t create the perception of an anti-Semitic environment.

Eager to read whatever Nysmith has to say for himself as this develops.

Sorry but this is ridiculous. You want to avoid hanging a Palestinian flag to avoid “emotionally harming” Jews? Utter nonsense.

I think PP said that combining that with the Hitler picture was the problem. Also, was there an Israeli flag at the school, as well?

[Anonymous]

As another poster said, it sounds like no adults acted well.

The Hitler drawing should not have been allowed by the teacher. There was probably some comments criticizing the state of Israel that the parents complaint about. And then it all snowballed from there, because everyone lost their tempers, including the Head.

I think we can all agree that the students who were expelled are the victims. Of all the adults.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:As another poster said, it sounds like no adults acted well.

The Hitler drawing should not have been allowed by the teacher. There was probably some comments criticizing the state of Israel that the parents complaint about. And then it all snowballed from there, because everyone lost their tempers, including the Head.

I think we can all agree that the students who were expelled are the victims. Of all the adults.

If we are speculating I agree it’s very plausible there were comments about the state of Israel and equally plausible that there were or were also comments that the IDF is doing a bang up job and all the people they’ve killed are “bad guys.”

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:More quotes:

"The bullies told their daughter that everyone at the school is against Jews and Israel, which is why they hate you," the complaint alleges. "The other children also taunted her about the death of her uncle, saying that they were glad he died in the October 7th attack, even though he had died years earlier."

The gaslighter(s) on this thread is more proof of what is going on in N. Va.

I can tell you FCPS has a problem to. Check out some of the speakers the MSAs have had. One speaker approved at our school praised Hamas and Hitler and prefered Jews dead.

If stop funding all education, that will solve the problem.

It's fascinating to see the one or more posters using all sorts of techniques to deflect and distract. First gaslighting and minimizing, now making a dramatic and ridiculous statement. I hope it's just one person and not multiple, but seeing what is brewing in northern Virginia it might be multiple. Yes, we need to see how the evidence pans out, but my goodness, you already see Hitler was allowed to be used as an example of a great leader. Would Sinwar be acceptable too?

I am 12:45 and did not write any of the other previous posts.

I deliberately made my comment vague, and it's interesting to see that one person who responded to me took it as a minimization of alleged anti-Semitism.

But if you reread my post, you can take it in different ways, which is the point. I don't know what actually went down at this school, and I'm culturally sensitive enough not to portray mass murderers as "strong leaders" in a discussion with minors, even though technically, they were certainly "strong", and completely awful, leaders. We can freely discuss Genghis Khan, who is further back in the fogs of history, but it's harder to discuss mass murderers whose victims have living descendants with a memory of what their ancestors went through, such as Mao Zedong, who killed 40-70 million people, or Stalin, 10-20 million or Pol Pot, 1.5-3 million.

So here I reiterate my point. By labeling everything as anti-Semitic, you are not helping Jewish victims of very real anti-Semitism. These Jewish kids at that school are certainly victims, either of anti-Semitism or their parents' belief that they were attacked.

We all need to be more measured in the way we express ourselves. We can say that innocent Gaza families deserve to democratically elect peaceful leaders of their own State without wishing for the annihilation of Israel. We can starve Hamas of funding and surgically take out Hamas members (as Mossad did in Iran for nuclear scientists and military leaders), without supporting mass murder in Gaza. Also, we can stop funding endless wars.

Ffs lady it was a GIANT DRAWING OF HITLER

This! Thanks for making me laugh too during these dark times. There's mention of kids saying Jews should die and somebody on here will try to make it a discussion of Israel that got too spirited or will claim people cry antisemitism to easily. OMG! I'm surprised someone hasn't come on here and tried to pull the old "as a Jew I..." as a way to claim antisemitism isn't antisemitism.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:As another poster said, it sounds like no adults acted well.

The Hitler drawing should not have been allowed by the teacher. There was probably some comments criticizing the state of Israel that the parents complaint about. And then it all snowballed from there, because everyone lost their tempers, including the Head.

I think we can all agree that the students who were expelled are the victims. Of all the adults.

If we are speculating I agree it’s very plausible there were comments about the state of Israel and equally plausible that there were or were also comments that the IDF is doing a bang up job and all the people they’ve killed are “bad guys.”

The students allegedly said they were glad the Jewish girl's uncle died on October 7th.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:As another poster said, it sounds like no adults acted well.

The Hitler drawing should not have been allowed by the teacher. There was probably some comments criticizing the state of Israel that the parents complaint about. And then it all snowballed from there, because everyone lost their tempers, including the Head.

I think we can all agree that the students who were expelled are the victims. Of all the adults.

If we are speculating I agree it’s very plausible there were comments about the state of Israel and equally plausible that there were or were also comments that the IDF is doing a bang up job and all the people they’ve killed are “bad guys.”

The students allegedly said they were glad the Jewish girl's uncle died on October 7th.

To clarify her uncle had not died on October 7th, but these students were implying it would be a good thing if he did.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:As another poster said, it sounds like no adults acted well.

The Hitler drawing should not have been allowed by the teacher. There was probably some comments criticizing the state of Israel that the parents complaint about. And then it all snowballed from there, because everyone lost their tempers, including the Head.

I think we can all agree that the students who were expelled are the victims. Of all the adults.

If we are speculating I agree it’s very plausible there were comments about the state of Israel and equally plausible that there were or were also comments that the IDF is doing a bang up job and all the people they’ve killed are “bad guys.”

The students allegedly said they were glad the Jewish girl's uncle died on October 7th.

Obviously that is horrible if it’s true! Sounds like her uncle did not die in the terrorist attack but very obviously a terrible thing to say.

But this is a complaint not a factual record-perhaps you have some experience with hearing about terrible things but waiting til they are verified?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Complaints are always one-sided. I can't imagine a school that has been around as long as Nysmith that would not be measured in its response when claims of anti-Semitism are made, especially in this political environment. Expelling the students seems like a radical thing to do - there must have been some reason. So - I take this complaint with a grain of salt and look forward to the school's side of the story before prejudging.

Agree. The article is lacking critical data points so hard to understand overall context. Doesn’t add up and make sense.

[Anonymous]

I think, unfortunately, it makes a lot more sense than people choose to accept.

First, empirically, the way in which they expelled the kids is outrageous, tone deaf, an example of pathetic leadership and deserving of what will inevitably be a significant financial penalty.

Those saying “well, Hitler was actually a strong leader” are missing the point and they know it. The gas chambers were, of course, an incredibly efficient machine but they’re not studied as a major outcome of the Industrial Revolution. Any shoulder shrug on the Hitler was a good leader trope is, in fact, complicit.

The school f’d up. They’re going to pay. And they should. For all of these self-important “gifted” leaders who believe that they are leading tomorrow’s Mensas, you’re actually terrible examples of leadership that show how naive we all are in assuming that the very existence of a school imputes competent management.

[Anonymous]

Come on—give me a break. There are always two sides to every story.

What’s being said right now just doesn’t line up with what so many of us know about Nysmith. Nysmith is a school that embraces diversity—racial, religious, LGBTQ+, you name it. Families with two dads have been part of the community for years, fully welcomed and supported.

To claim bullying suddenly went unchecked after five years at the school? It doesn’t add up. If trust broke down between the parents and the school, that’s unfortunate—but turning it into a headline about discrimination doesn’t reflect the reality the rest of us have experienced.

Before jumping to conclusions, let’s at least acknowledge that stories are complicated—and this one is no exception.

[Anonymous]

Very serious complaint with what sounds like a very serious law firm. Deeply troubling allegations. We shall see what the response shall be.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Very serious complaint with what sounds like a very serious law firm. Deeply troubling allegations. We shall see what the response shall be.

Yes, this is no grubbing plaintiffs firm. They did not have to take this.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:
Come on—give me a break. There are always two sides to every story.

What’s being said right now just doesn’t line up with what so many of us know about Nysmith. Nysmith is a school that embraces diversity—racial, religious, LGBTQ+, you name it. Families with two dads have been part of the community for years, fully welcomed and supported.

To claim bullying suddenly went unchecked after five years at the school? It doesn’t add up. If trust broke down between the parents and the school, that’s unfortunate—but turning it into a headline about discrimination doesn’t reflect the reality the rest of us have experienced.

Before jumping to conclusions, let’s at least acknowledge that stories are complicated—and this one is no exception.

Why on earth would you think the bolded has anything to do with the complaint? If anything, the bolded lends credence to the accusations.

[Anonymous]

I can't get past one article saying "The Nysmith School, known as one of the top 10 institutions in the country for students between kindergarten and eighth grade". What a joke!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Here’s how it probably went down …
1) Legitimate anti-Semitic bullying
2) Ridiculous class project allowing Hitler to be portrayed in an elementary school project about strong leaders (not old enough to understand the nuance)
3) Family is angry, afraid, and complains rationally
4) School grossly bungles subsequent actions (cancelling Holocaust survivor AND displaying Palestinian flag in the midst - intentional or not, comes across as biased against complainant)
5) School does not adequately protect Jewish students
6) Family is (understandably) no longer rationally upset - threatens legal action, gets overly heated or aggressive with the Head of School, or makes demands the school cannot/will not meet
7) HoS expels students due to parents not following expected code of conduct in interactions with staff

School needs a new HoS and a new lawyer …

You kind of summed up what I was thinking transpired. From the letter the HoS wrote the parents, it sounds like the conversation was extremely emotional (I understand why). It's hard to see how the kids could continue to go there under any circumstance. I don't think I would want my child there--and I am not Jewish.

It seems to me that people are bending over backwards to not be Islamaphobic.

How about no Palestinian flags, no Israeli flags, no Pride flags. Just American and Virginia maybe?

And, I was a teacher. It would not be hard to discourage a child from choosing Hitler as a "strong" historical leader. And, these are supposed to be "gifted" kids. They should understand "nuance."

What does Pride have to do with anything, PP? Why are you bringing up your hatred of the LGBTQ+ community in this thread?