As the world continues to see events unfold after October 7th, 2023, so do high schools across the U.S. Many Jewish students have witnessed an increase in antisemitism at their local high schools, maiming their education, friendships, and pride. 

Local junior Sami Sandler shares her increased experiences with antisemitism at Blue Valley High School, in Stilwell, Kan. During her sophomore year, Sandler began developing issues with the members of her debate team.

“We’re a room of debaters,” Sander said, “So we were all very opinionated and educated … but [they were] singling me out.” Sandler had friends who stopped talking to her and began posting uncomfortable things online, leading to the end of her participation in debate. 

At the time of the October 7th attacks, Sandler’s long-term debate partner stopped talking to her and avoided sitting near her in class. When Sandler inquired with her friend about the sudden change in their relationship, she was countered with excuses, “She told me she didn’t want to be my partner anymore … I asked why and she said ‘we don’t work, we’re too different, and we’re on different levels.’”

Sandler’s former partner told a mutual friend that she refused to hang out with her if Sandler was present, for she felt uncomfortable when Sandler was around. “I was honestly confused because at the time I hardly posted anything about the war and never said anything to her,” Sandler said. 

For the remainder of the year, Sandler sat alone in debate, experiencing a class dynamic she wished to never be a part of again. Sandler said she felt unwanted in that class, and on the team. 

The Jewish people have suffered from antisemitism dating back to the establishment of their religion. Throughout history, Jews have repeatedly fled from persecution, forcing them to choose between their identity and their safety. 

Teens facing antisemitism at school are put in virtually the same position. Since October 7th, misinformation about Jews has been spread rampantly, evoking fear in students. Most students’ fear is derived from worrying about what others think of them. 

For Jewish teens who have already grown up feeling like a minority, being in an environment where so many people are willing to speak out against them stimulates emotions associated with the history of hatred towards Jews. 

Being viewed as inferior by so many people makes it difficult for students to relinquish their fear when approached by another student. The words of others carry a larger weight when their intent is distasteful. 

Many students attending public schools rely on support from their Jewish Student Unions (JSU). Ellie Weiss, a sophomore at Minnetonka High School (Minnetonka, Minn.), is a member of her school’s JSU. 

During a debrief on October 8th, 2023, about the previous day’s events, a group of students from the school’s Muslim Student Association interrupted the meeting by recording students speaking without their consent and instigating arguments with Jewish students. 

For months afterward, posts appeared on the school’s social media platforms containing false accusations about Israel’s role in the war and misinformation meant to demonize Jews. 

Weiss said, “For a lot of … my school, that was the only information about the war that they were receiving, so you can imagine how that might look to people who didn’t know anything about the conflict.”

Following this, students were verbally harassed. Jewish students were targeted in the halls by others who had memorized their schedules. 

When students first approached the school for help, they were told to stop instigating and starting conversations with their peers. Weiss said these situations were not handled the way they should have been. 

The school claimed that because the posts circulating on social media were created by students and not by the school’s official page, there was nothing they could do in response. 

“I feel like everything they say is all talk,” she said. “I understand the whole social media thing … but clearly it was coming from a place of harassment and they could have done something about that.” Weiss says the school is generally good at handling situations, except regarding antisemitism. 

Schools feel pressure from families and parents to satisfy their individual needs. Fostering a safe environment for students of all backgrounds proves difficult when students’ needs oppose each other. Weiss says, “I think it’s because they think of it as controversial because they don’t want to upset either side.” 

While the content of these issues could be linked to controversy, it is the school’s responsibility to take initiative when the safety and well-being of the students are on the line. “I don’t think it’s controversial at all,” Weiss says. “If someone is being harassed then you do something about it.” 

Jewish students at The Barstow School have felt the effects of antisemitism at school since before October 7th. During the 2022-2023 school year, the grandmother of two students came to speak about her experience surviving the Holocaust. 

Current junior Drew Liss says that one student did not show up. Liss recounts that the student responded by saying, “I’m not going to show up to some Holocaust thing. I wish they would have died.” 

Following the war, at the school’s annual Cultural Enrichment Festival, students from the Palestine table approached the Israel table by shouting ‘from the river to the sea.’ 

Liss says that the school’s environment has become uneasy, “I feel like people are more willing to speak out against Israel and against Jews, which in turn is antisemitism.” 

Sandler is disappointed in her peers who are willing to stoop so low to make antisemitic comments to other students and her school district for not educating people enough about antisemitism. Sandler said, “Honestly I’m just kind of baffled at some of the things people say because they’re so extremely inaccurate and they’re confident saying it.”

Having a sudden outburst of antisemitism at schools creates fear among students when it comes to expressing their religion. Sandler says that before October 7th she felt safe expressing her Judaism at school, but once she was singled out as a target for antisemitic comments she no longer did.

“I stopped wearing my Star of David necklace,” Sandler shares, “But as the months went on I realized there was no shame in being Jewish and I should really take pride in it.”  

While Weiss never felt physically unsafe, she worried that someone would approach her with an insensitive comment. Like Sandler, Weiss also stopped wearing her Jewish star necklace to school. 

Liss said he feels, “Unsettling, uneasy, mad, angry, annoyed, disappointed,” while sitting in school. Even though Liss does not always feel safe expressing his Judaism, he chooses to take pride in his religion because it is important to him.  

During this difficult period, Jews need to take pride in their religion rather than hide from it. It is important for all Jewish individuals, especially Jewish students, to show their pride. Teens who embrace their Judaism at school set an example for those who feel isolated, helping them to feel a sense of community. 

The Jewish people continue to thrive in today’s world because of past figures who firmly believed in staying true to their religion. Pride often manifests itself in times of struggle, which is why now more than ever, Jews need to stay true to their beliefs and have pride in their religion.