Lawyers for Victoria’s education department asked an expert to remove the word Nazi from a report on whether a school principal’s alleged anti-Semitic speech caused offence to Jewish students, a court has heard.
Michael Whine, a government racism and human rights expert who lives in London, this week appeared as a witness in a trial brought by five ex-Brighton Secondary College students against the Melbourne school, its principal, teachers and the state.
Former students Joel and Matt Kaplan, Liam Arnold-Levy, Guy Cohen and Zack Snelling allege they experienced anti-Semitic bullying, discrimination and negligence at the school between 2013 and 2020.
The students’ claims have been denied by all respondents.
Brighton principal Richard Minack gave a number of speeches to the school to combat anti-Semitism and racism in 2018 and 2019, after parents approached him and urged him to do something, the court heard previously.
Several speeches allegedly included references to Jewish people being “sub-human”, Mr Minack spoke about his father, who was a Nazi, being a good man associated with him serving in the German army during World War II, and he used the word n***** when discussing racism.
Students and other witnesses to the months-long trial have alleged anti-Semitic behaviour and graffiti at the school increased after these speeches.
Read the article by Emily Woods in The Canberra Times.