Jewish Families File Lawsuit Against California School District for Failing to Address Antisemitism

A group of families has filed a lawsuit against Sequoia Union High School District (SUHSD) in California, alleging the District’s systematic failure to protect Jewish students from rampant antisemitism and illegal discrimination. The lawsuit names SUHSD’s Board of Trustees, certain school administrators, and a Woodside High School teacher as defendants. The families are receiving pro bono representation by Ropes & Gray LLP in partnership with The Deborah Project.

“We send our children to school to learn and grow, not to be targeted and harassed based on their religion,” said Sam Kasle, one of the plaintiff parents. “The District’s indifference to the rise in antisemitic incidents at their schools is both shameful and dangerous.”

The complaint details a significant increase in antisemitic behavior at SUHSD schools following Hamas’s October 2023 attacks. A particularly egregious instance involved the discovery of swastikas etched on Woodside High School’s campus. Rather than condemning the act and punishing the perpetrator, Woodside administrators, including Principal Karen Van Putten, dismissed the hateful graffiti as “spiritual symbols from Japanese Buddhism.”

In another example, a former Menlo-Atherton High School teacher delivered an ethnic studies presentation rife with antisemitic tropes, including the portrayal of Jews as puppet masters who secretly control society’s “dominant narratives”:

The lawsuit further alleges that SUHSD officials and teachers:

• Distributed antisemitic instructional materials that echoed Nazi propaganda;
• Made or tolerated anti-Jewish jokes, slurs, and epithets;
• Coerced Jewish students to endorse false and ahistorical beliefs to pass exams; and
• Advised Jewish students to hide their religious identities to avoid harassment.  

The plaintiff families seek injunctive and declaratory relief to prevent further harm and ensure equal educational opportunities for Jewish students at SUHSD schools.

“The District’s persistent failure to address virulent antisemitism within its schools is a grave violation of students’ civil rights,” said Ryan Weinstein, a Ropes & Gray attorney representing the families. “It is our profound privilege to stand with these families and defend the rights of Jewish students to learn in environments free from antisemitic discrimination and harassment.”