Cherry Creek Schools students concerned with bullying following the war in Israel
Sadly, Obada, a senior at Grandview High School in Aurora, is used to being made fun of for his Palestinian heritage. He says he usually tries to ignore it.
"It's normal now. Aladdin this, Osama bin Laden this, terrorist this" he said. "I shrug it off because I know I'm a better man."
But he says this week after the attacks on Israel by Hamas and the retaliation by the IDF, he says things have gotten worse and he's not the only one experiencing racist bullying.
Lamar, and Lana Darwish and Lanya Alaswad say they have experienced it at their schools; Cherry Creek High Cchool and Campus Middle School.
"My teachers and classmates have been calling us terrorists," said Lamar Darwish. "I really feel unsafe in the environment I'm in."
They all decided to speak out after students at both high schools organized a wear blue and white day to support Israel.
"I think they have the right to express themselves just as much as we do, it's just I think it's unfair that they only picked one side," said Lamar Darwish.
Cherry Creek Schools Superintendent Christopher Smith said in a statement:
"We are committed to ensuring that our schools are safe spaces for all students to learn and grow. We support our students in expressing their First Amendment rights. However, we will not tolerate any speech or behavior targeting anyone, especially our Israeli, Palestinian, Jewish, and Muslim community in light of the recent violence. Our strength lies in our diversity, and it's our collective responsibility to foster safety, value, and support for all students and staff, regardless of their backgrounds and identities."
The students say that doesn't make them feel any better.
"I can't really focus in class and I feel like my grades will really be affected by this," said Lamar Darwish.
"The students are there not to fight us but to all feel safe and to get our education but how are we supposed to do that when me as a Palestinian my family is getting killed and the next day I have to go to school and they are rubbing it all in my face," said Obada.
They say they don't want special treatment or to ignore what's going on in the Levant, they just want to go to school without being harassed.
"We're there to learn not to fight," said Obada.
Cherry Creek Schools says Smith met with principals Wednesday and reminded them of the district's commitment to inclusion for all and asked them to be on the lookout for students being bullied and take appropriate action.
They are also providing mental health resources for any students effected by the war in Israel.
