5 days ago
These Aussie kids went on a school excursion to the museum - but what happened inside left parents horrified
A group of children as young as 10 have been 'traumatised' by vile anti-Semitic abuse hurled by older students during an excursion to Melbourne Museum.
Year five pupils from Mount Scopus Memorial College took part in a shared activity with students from a Melbourne public high school on Thursday.
A group of older students from the other school repeatedly chanted 'Free Palestine ' and called the children 'dirty Jews', along with other racist slurs.
The children were quickly moved away by their teachers to de-escalate the situation.
'Our group leader immediately confronted the senior school educators to address the behaviour of their students,' Mount Scopus Memorial College Deputy Principal Greg Hannon said in a letter to parents.
'Upon returning to the college, we conducted a wellbeing check on all students to ensure they felt safe and supported.'
Principal Dan Sztrajt has commended his pupils on their dignified response.
'They really have lived up to the community's set of values, I'm proud of them,' he told Australian Jewish News.
'They were strong, they were of good courage. They did not respond in kind. They did not see this as an opportunity to launch slurs, to attack back at the other school. They responded like mensches, and I'm proud of them.'
The college has previously been targeted by vandals, who spray-painted 'Jew Die' on the fence at the front of the school.
Furious families have demanded answers.
'My granddaughter really doesn't understand why this happened, this is the first time she's ever experienced any anti-Semitism,' one man told 3AW radio on Friday.
A father posted online: 'They were tapped on the shoulder and then chanted at by these 16 and 17-year-old students [who said] 'free Palestine' and then, as they walked away, were called 'dirty Jews' and other racist comments.
'This is not a political debate; this is pure, unadulterated anti-Semitism and hate.'
The incident has sparked outrage from Jewish community leaders, who have expressed concerns about the rise of anti-Semitism in Australia since the Israel-Hamas war ignited tensions worldwide in October 2023.
'All Australians should be outraged that 10-year-old Jewish children were accosted during a school excursion to a museum, simply because of their ethnicity,' Australian Jewish Association chief executive Robert Gregory told Daily Mail Australia.
'Children aren't born with hate. What we're seeing is the tragic result of the relentless demonisation of the world's only Jewish state, driven by activists, media figures, and sadly, even politicians.
'These attacks are becoming more frequent. I'm hearing from an increasing number of Jewish Australians who no longer feel safe in their own country.'
Anti-Defamation Commission chairman Dvir Abramovich called for an immediate investigation by the Department of Education and mandatory anti-hate education following the 'unforgivable and chilling' incident.
'If we can't protect grade five students from hate in a museum, then we have failed as a society. We cannot allow this to be normalised. What happened in that museum is not an isolated outburst,' he said.
'It is part of a rising wave of anti-Semitism that is engulfing our country.'
Victoria Deputy Premier and Education Minister Ben Carroll also condemned the 'unacceptable' incident.
'I've spoken with the principal of Mount Scopus College today and conveyed my disgust at the anti-Semitic attacks on their students,' he said.
'I have offered every support possible to help them through this incident.
'It is unacceptable that students or staff feel unsafe in the community where they learn, work and play.'
Museums Victoria chief executive Lynley Crosswell has launched an investigation.
