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Edited by: Fern Sidman
A recent decision by Fair Lawn High School in New Jersey to ban yellow ribbons, which were meant to symbolize support for Israeli hostages, has ignited a storm of controversy, with critics accusing the school administration of blatant anti-Semitism. According to a report in The New York Post, the controversy unfolded during a school club fair, where the ribbons, along with the Israeli flag, were not allowed, allegedly because the school deemed them “too political.” Meanwhile, critics argue that other symbols, such as the keffiyeh displayed by the Muslim Student Association, were allowed, prompting accusations of hypocrisy and unequal treatment.
“What happened at Fair Lawn High School is an alarming case of hypocrisy and blatant anti-Semitism,” said Liora Rez, founder of StopAntisemitism, as quoted in The New York Post. She emphasized that the banning of the yellow ribbons, which served as a humanitarian symbol calling for the release of innocent civilians held hostage by Hamas, was a direct violation of Jewish students’ rights to express their identity and humanitarian concerns. For many, the incident was not just about politics but a moral and ethical call to raise awareness about the ongoing crisis in Israel.
Fair Lawn is a town with a significant Jewish population, with estimates ranging from 30% to 40% of its 35,000 residents identifying as Jewish. The decision to ban the display of the Israeli flag during the event — particularly because it was linked to a promotion for a trip to Israel — has raised even more concerns. The New York Post report indicated that some parents and activists argue that the administration’s actions reflect a pattern of anti-Semitism within the school district, something that has been brewing for years.
One of the most vocal critics, Adi Vaxman, a parent and founder of Operation Israel, expressed her frustration with the school’s handling of the event. “This glaring double standard exposes the bias of the school and the administrator in question,” Vaxman said, according to The New York Post. She argued that it was deeply concerning that the Muslim Student Association (MSA) was allowed to identify as Palestinian while the Jewish Student Union was censored for displaying the Israeli flag—a flag naturally associated with Judaism and relevant to the JSU’s planned trip to Israel. “Israel is the world’s only Jewish state, naturally associated with Judaism and relevant to the JSU’s advertised trip to Israel,” Vaxman added, underscoring how the flag’s significance went beyond politics, serving as a symbol of Jewish identity. Her daughter Maya is a student at the school.
Vaxman’s frustration stems from the administration’s classification of the yellow ribbon—an internationally recognized humanitarian symbol calling for the release of hostages—as a political symbol. “The administrator’s claim that the yellow hostage ribbon — a humanitarian symbol calling for the release of innocent civilians abducted from their homes and held in subhuman conditions by Hamas — is ‘political’ is deeply offensive and unacceptable,” Vaxman said, as quoted by The New York Post.
Adding fuel to the fire, Vaxman pointed out what many consider to be a stark double standard in the school’s handling of cultural and political symbols. The black-and-white keffiyeh, which some view as a symbol of Palestinian resistance against Israeli occupation, was prominently displayed for hours by the Muslim Student Association without interference from the administration. The New York Post reported that Vaxman argued that this clear disparity in how symbols were treated during the event exemplifies the systemic issues of bias that she and other parents have been raising for years.
In response to the growing outrage, Fair Lawn High School Principal Paul Gorski released a public statement defending the administration’s actions. Gorski emphasized that both student groups were treated equally during the event. “We take pride in our Student Activities program as well as the leadership shown by both students and faculty,” he wrote, according to The New York Post.
