A high school Jewish organization’s yearbook photo was reportedly replaced with a Muslim student, an act the mayor of East Brunswick, New Jersey, called “blatantly anti-Semitic.”
Mayor Brad Cohen is demanding answers as to why the original photo of a Jewish student who was a member of the Jewish Student Union club was “replaced with a photo of a Muslim student” in the East Brunswick (EB) High School yearbook. “Furthermore, the names of Jewish students are completely missing,” he said in a statement on Tuesday. Post to Facebook.
East Brunswick Public School System Superintendent Dr. Victor Valeski said the investigation is ongoing. He assured the community that the yearbooks were intended for seniors only until the error was discovered and that the books would be recalled and reprinted.
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Students walk from the East Brunswick High School campus after school in East Brunswick, New Jersey. (Getty Images)
“I am shocked and dismayed,” Valeski said in a statement Wednesday. “Most importantly, I personally, and the entire East Brunswick Board of Education, express my condolences for the hurt, pain and distress this incident has caused our Jewish students and their families and the continued impact this has on the entire East Brunswick education community. I sincerely apologize for the impact.
According to Valeski’s statement to the community, the district has contacted several professionals, including board of education attorneys, the American Civil Liberties Union, the yearbook publisher and the county administrative superintendent, with the superintendent’s office serving as the point of contact for the investigation. He also called on individuals and organizations to “slow down the speed of judgment.”
“Because the yearbook is produced using publishing software, we digitally track every element that is added or removed from the page,” Valeski told Fox News Digital. “We found no evidence that the image was replaced or the student’s name was removed. In fact, the Jewish Student Union never filled in the student’s name.”
Valeski told Fox News Digital that he plans to recommend that the district’s Board of Education hire a special consultant to complete an independent investigation.
“We have new proof of the corrected page and the publisher will be traveling to East Brunswick next week to begin replacing it in the student yearbook,” he said.
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Later Wednesday, Valeski apologized to Muslim students and families in the community.
“Just as I mentioned the impact on our Jewish students and families earlier today, I also want to express my sincere apologies to our Muslim students and families,” he posted. “I know the photo in the yearbook has caused pain to our Muslim students, and I am deeply sorry for that.”
“We work hard every day to create an inclusive school environment for all EB students, but I realize that new work needs to be done every day to make this happen,” Valeski added.
A school bus leaves the East Brunswick High School campus after school on February 22, 2018 in East Brunswick, New Jersey. (Getty Images)
Meanwhile, the mayor said the government needs to determine how the situation occurred, who was responsible, who signed off on the page, how the perpetrators will be held accountable and whether the conduct constituted a hate crime. He said he would await the results of the investigation but encouraged the district to do so as soon as possible.
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“I have been assured that when the investigation is completed, they will make the findings available to the public,” Cohen said in a statement on Tuesday. “At a minimum, I have also been assured that a new yearbook with the correct picture and name will be ordered and distributed.”
“Hate has no place in East Brunswick and anti-Semitism will not be tolerated,” he said.
Fox News Digital reached out to Cohen for further comment.
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