A high school English teacher that allegedly used the Heil Hitler salute during class and promoted anti-Jewish conspiracy theories to students has been placed on leave this week according to a spokesperson from the district.
Mt. Eden High School teacher Henry Bens had been the subject of many complaints over the past several weeks by students and teachers due to alleged antisemitic rhetoric and behavior during class, according to the San Francisco Chronicle. The district and the school allegedly had not reprimanded or followed up on the complaints for months, according to several students and several of Bens’ coworkers during a board meeting, but confirmed on Wednesday that Bens had been placed on leave, according to a prepared statement given to the Daily Caller News Foundation. (RELATED: ‘Day Of Hate:’ Chicago Police Warn Religious Groups To Be Alert As Neo-Nazi Groups Plan Hate Crime Day)
Lauren McDermott, a spokesperson for Hayward Unified School District (HUSD), said that the district does not “condone or tolerate any type of hateful or biased rhetoric, including anti-Semitism.”
“We take these allegations very seriously, and the teacher alleged to have made such statements and used inappropriate materials is currently on a leave of absence,” McDermott wrote. “Students from all backgrounds and religions should feel welcome and safe to express themselves while they learn, and that is the kind of district we aim to be. Hatred and discrimination, in any form, has never been welcome in our district.”
Returning students walk the hallway at Hollywood High School on April 27, 2021, in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Rodin Eckenroth/Getty Images)
Bens had reportedly told students that they were “indoctrinated” to believe certain things about the Holocaust and that he was only removing the “blindfold” from their eyes. The English teacher also allegedly had his students read parts of a book called “The Hidden Tyranny” which pushes the conspiracy that Jews controlled the U.S. government in WWII and backstabbed the Germans, resulting in the Holocaust.
Bens’ coworkers and students reportedly raised the alarm about his class in December but the school did not respond until months later by removing the material from the class and then later held a board meeting for the community to voice their concerns.
“When I know this teacher is teaching out of an antisemitic book, and the administration has known for two months … [and] after two months of them knowing they finally said ‘oh you’re not supposed to be teaching about this book,'” Senior David Felix Rogers, a former student of Bens, who claimed to have witnessed the same alleged antisemitic behavior two years prior, said, according to a recording of the meeting on the district’s YouTube account.” What took two months for them to finally say that you probably shouldn’t teach out of a book that was used … to justify genocide.”
McDermott also confirmed to the Lawton Constitution that an investigation was taking place and did not know when or if Bens would be returning to class.
Bens did not immediately respond to the DCNF’s request for comment.
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