A yearbook photo controversy is rocking a New Jersey high school and the surrounding community, after the names of those in a Jewish student group were omitted from the pages — and their group photo was replaced with one showing Muslim students.
The superintendent of East Brunswick schools has vowed to investigate how it all happened. In the section of the yearbook where each student group is listed, the Jewish Student Union's section had no names listed. And as for the group's photo that goes alongside it, officials said it appeared to show Muslim students who had no affiliation with the group.
"I sent a message out to the community today saying that we’re investigating - and I wished people would give us time to investigate, not rush to judgment," said Superintendent Victor Valeski. "I’m gonna wait to find out what the investigation finds, because it could be a legitimate mistake. So I don’t want to call it antisemitism yet."
School leaders echoed that call for patience as the district looks into whether someone was behind the decision, or if it was an honest mistake.
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"It sparked a lot of outrage in the community because it’s hard for most people to fathom how this happened 'by accident,'" said Mayor Brad Cohen, who has also demanded answers.
There are hundreds of copies of the yearbook currently in circulation. Cohen has questioned if the omission should be considered a hate crime, if it was indeed done maliciously.
"I think the community — both the Jewish community and community at-large — deserve an answer to this quickly," Cohen said. "It’s downright upsetting and outrageous for you not to call it out for what it is: It is an antisemitic act. It doesn’t imply who did it, not making any accusation of who did it — that’s up to the investigation."
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City leaders said they don't want the incident to define their diverse community. The school has said it plans on correcting the mistake.
