Australian Jewish Boy Forced To Kiss Muslim Classmate’s Shoes Received Threats
Graphic by Angelie Zaslavsky
(JTA) — The Jewish boy who was forced to kneel and kiss the shoes of a Muslim classmate has been sent threatening text messages.
The messages were sent Friday after photos of the incident were splashed across the front pages of newspapers in Australia and around the world, the Daily Mail reported. The photo was first published by the Australian Jewish News.
The messages told the 12-year-old boy that he would be slaughtered and asked if he wanted to “talk about suicide,” according to the report.
Victoria Police confirmed to the Daily Mail Australia that they were investigating a report of such text messages but would not comment further.
Dvir Abramovich, chairman of B’nai B’rith’s Anti-Defamation Commission, called the threats “vile and deplorable.” He said the boy’s parents now want a broader inquiry into anti-Semitism in schools.
Abramovich has helped the family to relocate the boy from Cheltenham Secondary College in suburban Melbourne to a Jewish school.
The incident did not take place on the school’s campus. Reports said a group of older students threatened the boy with violence if he did not comply.
Why I became the Forward’s editor-in-chief
You are surely a friend of the Forward if you’re reading this. And so it’s with excitement and awe — of all that the Forward is, was, and will be — that I introduce myself to you as the Forward’s newest editor-in-chief.
And what a time to step into the leadership of this storied Jewish institution! For 129 years, the Forward has shaped and told the American Jewish story. I’m stepping in at an intense time for Jews the world over. We urgently need the Forward’s courageous, unflinching journalism — not only as a source of reliable information, but to provide inspiration, healing and hope.
— Alyssa Katz, editor-in-chief
Support our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.
