After Graduating from Gardenvale Primary school, I moved to Brighton Secondary college for my high school education.
I was never secretive about my religion, although when some students found out that I was Jewish things began to change.
I repeatedly had swastikas drawn on my locker, after reporting each time to the school that it had happened no effort was made to stop the occurrences.
The school only cleaned the swastikas off my locker.
Students also started throwing specific objects at me such as coins and bagels.
As time progressed it only got worse to the point where any food object was being lobbed in my direction.
After reporting these instances to the teacher in charge of my form class they passed these occurrences off as ‘kids being kids’.
As it continued to happen again, I reported the events and the same teacher once again passed it off as ‘kids being kids.’
Eventually, the actions of some of the students became physical. I was pushed down the outdoor amphitheatre stair after being called “Jew boy”.
As a result, I sustained multiple small cuts and grazing resulting in me to attend the nurse at the school.
Out of all the staff at the school, she was the only person to iterate how wrong what the students did to me is as and that I must report it to the school.
The student who pushed me down the amphitheatre stairs was known to me, I reported him to the school.
But he merely received a warning from the school and the school passed the instance off as ‘kids being kids.’
My parents rang the school and left several messages. No one ever returned the call.
My mother even went to the school and spoke to the receptionist who again said I will get someone to call you.
Eventually, it got to the point where I no longer wanted to attend school.
As such after being at the school for only 3 terms I left the school and moved to a Jewish day school.
My parents contacted the school on several occasions to no avail.
My mother never received a return phone call.
When I left the school, my parents were never asked the reason for me leaving.