The state of Victoria must apologise and pay more than $430,000 in compensation after failing to protect five Jewish students from racial discrimination at a school in Melbourne’s south-east.
In a landmark case, five former students of Brighton Secondary College – Matt and Joel Kaplan, Liam Arnold-Levy, Guy Cohen and Zack Snelling – sued three staff from the government-run school and the state of Victoria for negligence and contraventions of the Racial Discrimination Act.
Federal Court Chief Justice Debra Mortimer on Thursday upheld the students’ allegations in part, finding the college’s principal, Richard Minack, failed to systemically address antisemitic bullying and harassment with established practices used for other vulnerable minorities. She said the principal also failed to take appropriate steps to discourage swastika graffiti.
The former students claimed Jewish students were treated differently to other vulnerable minority groups and had to endure “unreasonably and extraordinarily high levels” of swastika graffiti around the school grounds, which “made them fearful for their safety at school”.
They said that, during their time at the school, they were spat at, kicked, called “f—ing Jew” and given Nazi salutes. Matt Kaplan said he saw 80 to 130 swastikas at the school between year 7 and year 10.
The group claimed there were no systemic measures taken to discourage antisemitic behaviour or educate students, as was done when other minority groups faced discrimination.
Read the article by Nicole Precel in The Age.