A photo of eight students lying in the shape of a swastika on their high school football field in San Jose, California, accompanied by an antisemitic quote from Adolf Hitler, has ignited outrage in the Bay Area Jewish community.
The image, taken at Branham High School, was posted on Instagram on December 3 and quickly went viral, prompting hundreds of reactions before being removed. The caption included an excerpt from a 1939 speech by the Nazi leader that called for the destruction of Jews in Europe.
The post garnered more than 500 comments before Instagram deleted both the post and the student’s account.
A Jewish senior at the school, speaking on condition of anonymity for fear of retaliation, said she initially assumed the image was fake and perhaps AI-generated. “It was just insane to think that there were people at my school that went around quoting Hitler,” she told J. The Jewish News of Northern California.
Another Jewish student said she felt frightened and threatened by the incident, and described the atmosphere at school as hostile.
A Jewish mother, whose own mother survived the Holocaust, said she had “goosebumps” when she saw the photo and feared for her son’s safety.
Branham High’s principal, Beth Silbergeld, issued a formal statement condemning the incident as antisemitic and unacceptable. She said the behavior "does not reflect the values of our school community.”
She added that the school is coordinating with law enforcement and Jewish community organizations, including the Bay Area Jewish Coalition (BAJC), the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) and the local Jewish Community Relations Council, to address the harm and support affected students.
According to school officials, the students involved have been identified — though their names and the disciplinary measures taken against them will not be publicly disclosed, in compliance with U.S. federal student privacy laws.
Members of the Bay Area Jewish community reacted with shock and dismay. “To have children echoing Hitler’s words is frankly just shocking and heartbreaking, and the entire community has been rocked by this,” Tali Klima, a BAJC spokesperson, said. “This bold and premeditated display has really shaken everyone.”
Another BAJC leader suggested the incident reflects broader failures in Holocaust and hate symbol education, and called for stronger preventive measures in schools.
In response, the school district said it will collaborate with Jewish advocacy groups and the ADL, and plans to introduce educational programs to teach about the Holocaust, antisemitism and the meaning of hate symbols.
Pattern of bias and antisemitism
This is not the first time the school has faced allegations of antisemitism. Earlier in 2025, the California Department of Education determined that Branham High’s ethnic studies curriculum had discriminated against Jewish students by presenting a one-sided view of the Israeli–Palestinian conflict.
Jewish families and civil rights groups in the region have repeatedly warned of rising antisemitic sentiment in schools across California.
The San Jose Police Department has classified the “human swastika” event as a potential hate crime and is conducting an active investigation.
Branham’s administration says it is committed to healing the harm, educating the student body and rebuilding trust. But for many students and families, the damage has already been done. As one Jewish student said anonymously: “There are people at my school who think they can get away with this.”