The principal of a private school in Alice Springs has apologised after a student who came to a Book Week assembly dressed as Adolf Hitler was named as being among the best dressed.
The principal of St Philip’s College, Roger Herbert, said the school deeply regretted the decision to allow the student to come dressed as Hitler at a special assembly for Book Week, which occurred in front of a group of exchange students from a Jewish school in Melbourne.
Mr Herbert said the boy got up as one of the “best dressed” people at the assembly.
He said he had apologised to both the Jewish students and the principal of Bialik College in Melbourne, who had accepted his regret.
“We got them together and apologised and they were fantastic, absolutely fantastic, and accepting,” Mr Herbert told 783 ABC Alice Springs.
“We also contacted the school to say look, this had happened, please understand.”
The student had been given permission from a teacher prior to arriving at the school dressed as Hitler.
“In a busy school, this student did go to a respected staff member said ‘is this OK?’ and the staff member said ‘yes’,” Mr Herbert said.
“Now she is absolutely shattered that she said that, and I’m really concerned about her wellbeing.”
Bialik College principal Jeremy Stowe-Lindner said it was an unfortunate incident but children were unpredictable and St Philip’s had taken the right action since the incident.
“I understand that no malice was intended and I guess the coincidence of Jewish children visiting from Melbourne is a learning opportunity for the community, and that the principal assures me this is number one priority,” Mr Stowe-Lindner said.
This post originally appeared on ABC News.
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Top Comments
Perhaps the teacher was over-worked and multi-tasking when he asked her but seriously, if a child came up to you and asked if they could dress as Adolf Hitler, surely a base human auto response would be to say no. But even worse, to be picked among best dressed? Which means the judge/s had to have deliberated and thought about it for more than a few seconds? That is two layers of unbelievability.
I presume there would be same outrage had a child dressed up as Stalin or Mao Zedong?
Why would you think there wouldn't be? I assume you're trying to make some sort of point but I'm lost as to what it might be.
. If the child was wearing the costume, not to venerate Hitler, but simply as a way of educating students about Nazism and the Holocaust, what's the problem? Tactless to do so in front of Jewish students though. Anti-Semitism is on the rise again and people, especially the young need to be reminded of Hitler. I just wonder had the child come dressed as Stalin, whether there would be the same level of vitriol directed both at the student and the school? Or do the failings of the extreme left get a free pass?
Hitler was evil because he was evil. It had nothing to do with him being on the left or right of politics. Ditto Stalin and Mao.
And the way to educate students about Nazism and the Holocaust is not to dress up as Hitler for Book Week. It trivialises an event that caused a lot of harm and death to millions of people.