On Monday morning, two antisemitic Nazi flags were found draped over Heath High School in Rockwall County, Texas.
By Rachel Avraham
According to a recent report on WFAA, parents and students in Rockwall County in Texas woke up Monday morning to hate displayed at their high school, with “antisemitic Nazi flags hanging at Rockwall Heath. The police are investigating the incident.” WFAA reported that the police want to find who is responsible “because there are parents who are now scared to send their children to school after two antisemitic flags were found draped on the school building.”
According to the report, the school principal Todd Bradford in a letter to parents called the Nazi flags “two inappropriate and offensive flags” that “were hanging from the east side of the building. The Heath Department of Building Safety quickly arrived and removed the flags.” In the letter, the school principal said that “this is a criminal act and the police department are now investigating.”
“It was two massive flags that were hung over the roof right that had swastikas on them,” said Rockwall-Heath alumna Stephanie Parnes, who said she saw a photo of it shared among students online. “It was a Nazi symbol. What happened was not a joke; it’s a threat,” she said. Parnes, who is Jewish, said her younger brothers were scared to attend the school on Monday.
Another Jewish alumna, who has brothers who still attend the school, told WFAA: “I was hoping that at 6:40am in the morning, when the police found this, they would contact the Jewish families of Rockwall. There are not many of us and they know who we are. I wish that they contacted my family and said that this is happening and these are the steps we are now taking.”
“We appreciate the students who reported the situation quickly and our partnership with the Heath Department of Public Safety for their prompt response,” Rockwall ISD officials said in a statement. “Rockwall ISD remains committed to ensuring safe and respectful learning environments across all campuses.“
Fox 4 News reported that Chabad Rockwall Rabbi Moishy Kalmenson called the display shocking and said he was “deeply saddened” to see it. “This does not reflect the Rockwall County that we live in and we know and we love,” he said. “This type of behavior really has to be called out and condemned. There needs to be accountability for something like this when it happens.”
“As the Mayor of Heath, I stand with our community in firm opposition to any acts of hatred, including the hateful display of flags that were found at Rockwall-Heath High School yesterday morning. We believe in the power of love, unity, and respect for all people, as God calls us to do,” Mayor Jeremiah McClure said in a statement on social media. “Rest assured, these actions will not be tolerated, and those accountable will face the consequences of their behavior.”
Jimmy McClintock, who co-founded a group called Ambassadors for Israel International in Rockwall, told WFAA that he views this incident as a test of what the community will do next. “Everybody is scared of the bully, so when something like this happens, it puts dread and fear into people’s hearts,” he said. “It scares people, so they want to go inside, introvert. That’s the last thing we need to do.”
Photo from KENS 5: Your San Antonio News Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QUQF4MtkIds
