SE Oakland News

The Bloomfield Hills School District held a special meeting on March 20 in the aftermath of a controversial speaking event.

On March 14, Bloomfield Hills High School welcomed former congressional candidate and Palestinian activist Huwaida Arraf as a diversity speaker. During a mandatory assembly, she reportedly deviated from the school's list of approved speech topics and discussed the oppression and violence facing Palestinians in the Gaza Strip. Many parents and students were upset by Arraf's anti-Israel dialogue, as there is a large Jewish population in the district. They were also angered by what they perceived as a weak apology from principal Lawrence Stroughter, who said that the school doesn't accept speech attacking people for their race or religion but never mentioned "Israel", "Jewish" or "antisemitism" by name. Stroughter has since been placed on administrative leave.

The March 20 meeting featured a discussion on how to keep students feeling safe and how to move forward from the incident. The Board also included a lengthy public comment session for parents, students and community leaders to share their thoughts on the event. The Board and district staff said that they had made counselors and social workers available to students and had been receiving regular visits from law enforcement in recent weeks investigating and pursuing all complaints or targeted acts of criminal behavior, bringing therapy dogs with them. In order to help the district heal, the Board has also organized listening circles with students and will implement Islamophobia and antisemitism training for all staff members.

The public comment session went on for over two hours and featured over three dozen speakers. Parents were angry that the school didn't properly vet the speaker as her social media posts contained many of the same opinions that she shared with the students. They were also upset that no teachers or other adults attempted to stop the speaker from singling out groups of people in her speech. Students also declared their anger with the school, saying that they supported diverse speakers but will not stand for hateful or discriminatory speech. The first two speakers during the session were Imam Abdullah Al-Mahmudi from the Muslim Unity Center and Rabbi Asher Lopatin from the Jewish Community Relations Council.

"Students and parents from my congregation have expressed that their concerns, fears and opinions are being silenced," said Al-Mahmudi. "They're being ignored and dismissed by the school administration. They have automatically been labeled and have been told by the school administration things such as and I quote, 'If adults cannot solve these problems, how are a bunch of high schoolers going to do so?' Let me be clear. We are not here to solve the crisis. Rather, we are here to educate and learn from one another as we work together and respect each other. Students in my congregation need to be heard. They need to be respected, and they must be accepted. Failure to do so from any side of a difference runs counter to the values of free and open inquiry, critical thinking, and sound education. Moreover, it should never be acceptable or tolerated for students or adults to weaponize disagreements into threats of violence.”

“I want to share two approaches that I believe are crucial for the Bloomfield Hills School community at this time," said Lopatin. "First, as a Jew, a rabbi, a proud Zionist, also a supporter of Palestinian rights, I ask the school to support all students, Jewish, Muslim, Christian, Hindu and others in expressing their beliefs and passions on any issue, from how to deal with racism to how to approach Israel or the plight of the Palestinian people. Students -- I agree with the Imam -- need to be supported, empowered and loved. And part of that is letting them express themselves and celebrate their causes. But the second crucial point: this school must help students understand that they are one community.”