What the heck has gone wrong at Branham High School in San Jose, California? On Dec. 3 a student at the school shared a post on Instagram of eight high schoolers lying on the school’s football field in the shape of a swastika.
That’s instantly not great, but maybe they simply didn’t understand the full symbolism of that shape? Oh, what’s that? The student captioned the image with a direct quote from Adolf Hitler calling for “the annihilation of the Jewish race in Europe”. Not good.
‘Students form human swastika on Calif. high school football field…’
— The Daily Sneed
– NY Post
This was the instagram posthttps://t.co/QO7fcmNaFx pic.twitter.com/JKcb0FvCpX(@Tr00peRR) December 8, 2025
With jaws on the floor, screenshots of the post began circulating online, and it was soon brought to the attention of Branham High School Principal Beth Silbergeld. She underlined that while federal laws prevent her from identifying the students, disciplinary action is underway. Speaking to The Guardian, she said:
“While this incident does not reflect the values of the vast majority of our students and families, the harm it caused is real and must be addressed. Many in our community were rightly appalled by the image. This incident is troubling and unacceptable. Professionally, we are committed to learning from this moment and moving forward with greater unity and purpose.”
If Branham High School students feel so comfortable with promoting Hitler, then perhaps take a look to see if your history department is doing its job properly! Silbergeld continued:
“Our message to the community is clear: this was a disturbing and unacceptable act of antisemitism. Actions that target, demean, or threaten Jewish students have no place on our campuses. CUHSD [Campbell Union High School District] and Branham stand firmly against all forms of hate, discrimination, and intolerance.”
Horror from the local Jewish community
A “human swastika” at Branham HS is “repulsive and unacceptable,” says ADL’s Marc Levine.
— ADL California (@ADLCalifornia) December 8, 2025He’s partnering with school leaders to ensure Jewish students feel safe. Hate has no home here—ever. #NoPlaceForHate #StopAntisemitism
Read article: https://t.co/YYovBeb0yk pic.twitter.com/uCffMljJM0
As you might expect, the response from the local Jewish community has been horror and outrage that students would go this far. Bay Area Jewish Coalition spokesperson Tali Klima said:
“To have children echoing Hitler’s words is frankly just shocking and heartbreaking, and the entire community has been rocked by this. This bold and premeditated display has really shaken everyone.”
A Jewish senior at the school was similarly shocked, saying he first hoped the image was AI-generated. When he discovered it was real, he said: “It was just insane to think that there were people at my school that went around quoting Hitler”.
As for the students themselves? Well, it certainly doesn’t sound as if they’re being expelled. Silbergeld has said that the eight are “committed to taking accountability for the harm that was done”.
Honestly, if dragging your school’s reputation through the mud in international media, openly supporting Hitler, and using school premises to create Nazi propaganda doesn’t get you expelled, what on earth will?!
