We, the students, alumni, faculty, parents, and outsiders, of Lakeland Regional High School demand that more anti-racist and philo-semitic efforts be initiated into a school system that is known for students and faculty being racist and anti-semitic. 

Between February and May of 2019, an LRHS student was a target of repeated anti-semitic actions, including swastikas drawn and carved into her desk. There was also a Star of David with a swastika drawn within it discovered.

This is not the first case of swastikas being written on Lakeland property. If you look closely at the walls within the school, you will find multiple drawings of swastikas scattered throughout, ESPECIALLY within the bathrooms.

In recent years, Lakeland has had difficulty with the activities conducted within their bathrooms. Besides typical vaping and vandalism, many Lakeland students wrote hateful speech and symbols along the walls, often covering murals of peace and kindness.

It is well known for faculty at Lakeland to be dismissive of racial slurs thrown around in the hallway, as well as partaking themselves in targetting students of color for unknown "suspicion" or biased dress codes. It is not uncommon to hear the N-word and "Allah Akbar" mockingly shouted throughout the hallway and scribbled on the walls. Students can also be seen modeling the Nazi salute as a “joke." This fowl language and behavior is often done in front of faculty, as suggested by many students. Students have also noticed that faculty have even witnessed this behavior used against other students and have remained idle.

As an alumni of this school, I have fallen victim to this as well. I longed for the day of leaving this school, for I dealt and heard hate speech on a regular basis.

Something must be done. Faculty and students must be held more accountable, as well as become more educated and trained on these scenarios, the dangerous effects, and how to handle them. I fear remaining silent to this will only worsen it, especially within our nation's current climate. We cannot let this persist!