Antisemitic incident at Questacon

At a Year 6 school camp at Questacon National Science and Technology Centre in Canberra on March 18, two Mount Scopus Memorial College (MSMC) primary students were targeted by a high school student from NSW’s Crookwell High School who allegedly directed “Heil Hitler” towards them.

The MSMC students were not in school uniform, but some were wearing kippot. A fellow student from the same school called out the slur and questioned their classmate’s racism.

MSMC Principal Dan Sztrajt stated, “The terror attack at Bondi has taught us that antisemitism left unchecked leads to violence. We are well past the time where this type of behaviour can be swept under the rug. My school community expects definitive and clear action following this incident.”

“No child or adult in Australia, regardless of their faith or background, should be subjected to senseless hatred. We have an absolute expectation that every Australian school must stand firmly against any form of hate,” he said.

“As educators, it is our collective responsibility to take an education – based approach to dismantling prejudice and hate. Our College will continue to reinforce our values of respect, integrity and identity. We remain committed to ensuring our students are proud of who they are and feel safe in any environment”.

Sztrajt said it was “notable and heartening” that another student spoke out against the slur. “This act of being an ‘upstander’ and refusing to remain silent in the face of hatred is exactly what we need more of in Australian schools,” he said.

MSMC faced a similar incident at the Melbourne Museum last year, when children were called a ‘dirty Jews’ while on an excursion, and the school had ‘Jew die’ graffitied on its fence in 2024.

A NSW Department of Education spokesperson said, “Antisemitism has no place in our schools.  The school extends its sincere apologies to the students impacted by this incident.”

“The school is taking disciplinary action to address the seriousness and inappropriateness of the behaviour.”

Questacon stated, “Antisemitic behaviour or any form of bullying, harassment or discrimination, is not tolerated under any circumstances. Questacon has apologised to the principal, students and staff who were subjected to this behaviour from other visiting students.

“Action taken by the supervising teachers along with staff at Questacon meant the unacceptable behaviour could be immediately addressed, and we understand this matter is now being handled privately by the schools involved.”