20 | JUNE 6 • 2024
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round 150 high school
students at Ann
Arbor’s Skyline High
School participated in a “Walk
Out for Palestine” on May 20.
A smaller group of students at
Pioneer High School also par-
ticipated on their campus.
The protest appears to have
been organized through an
Instagram account called @
eagles_against_g3n0c1d3_ that
was created in early May. The
account posted various social
media messages to garner sup-
port for the event. One post
outlined rules for the protest,
emphasizing “absolutely no
antisemitic slogans, symbols
or statements” and stating that
“nobody who does not attend
Skyline High School may attend
the campus protest.
”
Videos and photos from the
event, posted on Instagram,
show students chanting “Israel
bombs, USA pays. How many
kids have we killed today?”
Participants held signs reading

“ceasefire now,
” “free Palestine”
and “invest in healthcare not in
warfare.
”
Several students delivered
speeches during the walkout.
One student equated the Israel-
Hamas war with the Holocaust,
saying, “When Germany was
trying to wipe out the Jews,
America stood by and did
nothing. Look where it got us.
Six million Jews killed. This is
the same thing. We are killing
people because of something
they cannot control. Because
they live somewhere. And that
is not right. They are killing
people for no reason.
”
Another speaker declared,
“Israel is committing a geno-
cide! 35,000 Palestinians have
been murdered by Israel!”
One student addressed those
attending just to get out of class,
saying, “I know some of you
are here to skip class. Shame on
you!”
Some hecklers could be
heard on the videos; they were

quickly shut down by others
yelling, “Shut up!”
One Jewish student, who
requested to remain anony-
mous, expressed that some
of their friends participated
“mostly to skip class,
” but was
concerned that they didn’t
understand the impact of the
protest on Jewish students.
Another student, who said
they are not Jewish, expressed
that they found it disruptive
when their classmates walked
out during instruction time.
This student, who asked to
remain anonymous, felt that the
protest took away from learning
time.
“This kind of event is dis-
tressing for those who support
Israel and are appalled by
Hamas’ terror attack,
” Rabbi
Asher Lopatin, director of
community relations at the
Jewish Federation of Greater
Ann Arbor, wrote in an email.
“We wish that those protesting
would call for a release of hos-
tages held by Hamas.
“We call on the district to
ensure that such protests do
not include hate speech and
that protesters are respectful of

the rights of others who have
differing views to express them-
selves.
”
Lopatin added that part of
his role is organizing parents
to work with the schools “to
ensure they focus on educating
students instead of letting divi-
sive world issues lead to educa-
tional chaos.
”
Ann Arbor Public Schools
Director of Communications
Andrew Cluley confirmed that
teachers were instructed to stay
“content neutral.
” Teachers were
told to remain in class unless
the entire class participated in
the protest. Those not teaching
during the protest were asked
to ensure student safety by
walking at the back of the
walkout.
Cluley also confirmed that
no formal instruction on the
Israel-Hamas war has been
provided to students.
Ann Arbor Public Schools
has posted guidelines for
student-led protests. AAPS says
it supports student free speech
but states that any protest must
not disrupt classwork or cause
significant disorder.
The district aims to ensure
a structured and supervised
environment for all students,
whether they participate in the
protest or not.

Students at two Ann Arbor high
schools walk out during class.

‘Walk
Out for
Palestine’

OUR COMMUNITY

LEFT: Students at Skyline High
School at their May 20 protest.
ABOVE: The flyer for the
walkout at Skyline High School,
“Protest to Divest.”

LAURA PASEK SPECIAL TO THE JEWISH NEWS