Update: The district said it would organize a listening session, offer anti-bias training for staff and review its curriculum in response to community criticism. See the response here.
One North County parent is upset that a picture of Adolf Hitler was on a whiteboard in his son’s 7th-grade class at Carmel Valley Middle School. The picture of Hitler was included on a poster board of images with the likes of Gandhi, JFK, MLK, Winston Churchill and other historical figures.
“I think a portrait of Adolf Hitler on the wall is inappropriate. This is one of the worst people in history,” said Dr. Roy David whose 12-year-old son goes to Carmel Valley Middle School. “All these role models — and Adolf Hitler — it's wrong, it's just wrong.”
David said his son, who is Jewish and whose family members were victims of the Holocaust, told the teacher the picture hanging on the whiteboard “trivializes the Holocaust.” According to David, the teacher responded by saying, “'Well, Hitler may have done some bad things, but he also had strong leadership qualities.’ To me, it was just too much at that point.”
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In a statement emailed to NBC 7, the San Dieguito Union High School District wrote in part, "A lesson in World History included a discussion of various historical figures, along with images of them on a whiteboard in the classroom. The images were directly related to the curriculum and displayed during a lesson. After concern was raised regarding one of the images and the impact it had on a student, it was taken down."
David said he contacted the principal, who he says did not immediately take down the picture, as well as the Anti-Defamation League, which called the school. At that point, ADL said the principal had already taken it down. The ADL also said plans are in the works for the ADL to educate those at the school, as it does to other schools and places needing education.
People can have good intentions, said the ADL, but be unaware of the impact. The ADL added that it is a "counsel culture, not a cancel culture."
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The ADL said Carmel Valley Middle School is a "No Place for Hate” school, which means it is committed to fighting hatred and bigotry. The ADL said no school is perfect when it comes to this, all schools need education. The group adds that Carmel Valley Middle School responded in a way to ensure this is a learning lesson.
