San Jose high school investigating ‘human swastika’ formed by students in photo on campus

Branham High School in San Jose is investigating an antisemitic incident in which a group of students formed a swastika using their bodies on the school’s football field last week and posted a photo online, prompting shock and concern from the Jewish community.

Beth Silbergeld, BHS principal, confirmed that a group of students in a photo had formed a human swastika on the school’s football field. The photo was then posted alongside a quote from Adolf Hitler. The school was alerted to the photo — shared broadly across social media last week — via an anonymous tip line Wednesday evening.

The incident was a “disturbing and unacceptable act of antisemitism,” Silbergeld said in a statement, reiterating the school’s commitment to creating a community where BIPOC, Jewish and LGBTQ+ students feel “safe, respected, and valued.”

“CUHSD and Branham stand firmly against all forms of hate, discrimination, and intolerance,” Silbergeld said. “While this incident does not reflect the values of the vast majority of our students and families, the harm it caused is real and must be addressed.”

The school is investigating the incident and has identified the students involved, Silberman said. The students are “committed to taking accountability for the harm that was done,” she added, but the school cannot share the students’ names or any details of disciplinary action under federal law.

The incident was reported to the San Jose Police Department, which said Monday that the investigation into the alleged hate crime is active and ongoing.

The school is implementing “multiple educational approaches” for students to learn about the Holocaust, antisemitism and hate symbols and speech, Silbergeld said. The school plans to partner with the Anti-Defamation League, the Bay Area Jewish Coalition and the Jewish Community Relations Council of the Bay Area.

A second incident occurred in connection to Leigh High School on Friday, in which an unidentified person posted a video on an Instagram account accusing teachers and administrators — pictured with lasers coming from their eyes — of accepting money from the American Israel Public Affairs Committee.

Michelle Steingart, LHS principal, said in a statement that “the post is untrue, and the suggestion it made is antisemitic.” The school reported the account and it was removed over the weekend.

CUHSD Superintendent Robert Bravo said the human swastika was “tremendously alarming,” calling it “unquestionably antisemitic and unacceptable.” He added, in regards to the LHS incident, that “targeted harassment of our teachers is intolerable.”

“As a school community and as educators, we recognize our responsibility to address and repair the harm caused by these incidents,” he said in a statement.

The swastika incident was shocking and heartbreaking for the Jewish community, said Tali Klima, spokesperson for BAJC. Such incidents cause the community to fear whether it is safe to be visibly Jewish, she said, such as wearing a Star of David necklace or putting up menorahs for Hanukkah.

“It is such a blatant display of antisemitism,” Klima said. “It’s not just the fact that they created the human swastika. It’s the caption underneath that is directly taken from … one of Hitler’s own speeches about the Jews. It’s the fact that this was done in this very intentional, coordinated way — visibly, right during daylight and the children are not covering their faces. The fact that the children feel emboldened to do this and then post it on social media in such a public way is very scary for our community.”

Maya Bronicki, education director for BAJC, said that the district’s parents are “beyond anxious” about antisemitic incidents.

“It came to the point where I’m hearing constantly from parents, ‘I don’t want anyone to know my kid is Jewish,’ ” she said. “This is an environment that no kid should live in because they should not hide their identity or their religion in order to be safe at school.”

Adriana Lombard, director of public education for JCRC, added that the incident harms all students, whether or not they are Jewish.

“Anytime we’re seeing any of these symbols and images and sometimes phrases that have been used historically to indicate hate toward the Jewish people, it’s going to cause harm and it’s going to be a difficult thing to experience, not just in the school community, but more broadly, the general community,” she said.

State Senator Dave Cortese also said in a statement that he was “deeply disturbed” by the incident.

“Acts of hatred — no matter where they occur — have a profound impact on our young people, our families, and our broader community. There is absolutely no place for antisemitism, or any form of bigotry, in our schools or in our society,” Cortese said.

Marc Levine, regional director of the ADL’s Central Pacific Division, said that the organization is in conversations with administration from BHS, adding that students and families were “rightfully horrified” by the incident.

“This is repulsive and unacceptable,” Levine said. “The swastika is a terrorizing symbol of antisemitism and the Holocaust perpetrated against Jewish people and others by Hitler and the Nazis.”

Lombard added that JCRC is currently developing a recommendation for how the school can address the incident. The school has not yet reached out to BAJC, Bronicki added.

The incident comes amid an uptick in antisemitic incidents, especially those at school, since the Oct. 7 attacks on Israel by Hamas, said Lombard. BAJC, which primarily works in Santa Clara County, has received 500 reports of antisemitic incidents at K-12 schools since November 2023, Bronicki added.

The California Department of Education previously found that two teachers at BHS had discriminated against Jewish students by describing the Israel-Hamas war as a genocide against the Palestinian people and describing Israel as a settler-colonial state. Bronicki noted that the organization has brought up other incidents to CUHSD that have been dismissed.

“If these kids would have received proper training, proper lessons, hopefully this could have been prevented, and that’s what we are hoping that will happen now that, unfortunately, it was visible enough to get the attention of the broader community,” Bronicki said.

Young people are also being exposed to these ideas and symbols online without corresponding education as to the harm behind them, Lombard said. Education about the Holocaust, Jewish and Jewish American contributions to history and antisemitism are integral to helping prevent antisemitism in young people.

“(Antisemitism is) not ever been something that goes away,” Lombard said. “It’s a problem that’s existed for hundreds of years.”