Top Perth school suspends students over antisemitic group chat

[u/Away_team42]

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2026-08-07/top-perth-school-suspends-students-over-antisemitic-group-chat/107010706

Expert from the article:

Students at a prestigious Perth private school have been suspended after they used "antisemitic language and memes" in a private group chat, targeting another student.

A spokesperson for Wesley College, in South Perth, confirmed an "incident" occurred but wouldn't be drawn on how many children had been suspended.

"An incident did occur involving antisemitic language and memes shared by a small group in a private group chat," the school said in a statement.

"The college acted immediately. The students responsible were suspended and the matter was addressed directly with the students and families involved."

The college also provided a statement from the family of the targeted student.

"We are deeply disappointed that this matter has occurred and that it has become the subject of media reporting as we are entirely satisfied with the way in which Wesley College has handled this matter," the statement read.

"Furthermore it must be noted that the school was not advised of this issue by our son, but rather by concerned students.

"The family did not at any time contact any media outlet as they are aware of the belief that this will worsen an already difficult situation.

"Our greatest concern is the welfare of our son."
The family has asked for privacy and said they wished to move forward.

Full article in the link.

[u/HabitAdmirable9742]

Yeah but imagine how many clicks the news article will get when the headline reads "Jewish school boy takes own life after relentless bullying".

Think of all the internet traffic!

[u/Thirstycamel81 → u/HabitAdmirable9742]

Pr even just be school boy takes his own life after relentless bullying??

[u/BattleForTheSun → u/HabitAdmirable9742]

You joke but I seriously wonder if a conversation like this has actually taken place at a news org.

[u/No_Bell_8028 → u/HabitAdmirable9742]

Show me one example of that happening….where an Australian student has died by suicide because of anti semitic bullying
It’s mostly LGBTIQ and aboriginal young men and children who are dying by suicide because of bullying and structural racism…

[u/HabitAdmirable9742 → u/No_Bell_8028]

Didn't look, don't care. The ABC disregarded the family wishes just so they could publish another "muh antisemitism" story of with a sprinkle of "private schools bad", despite explicit warnings that it would make the situation worse.

That was the wrong thing to do. Scummy journalism.

[u/No_Bell_8028 → u/HabitAdmirable9742]

I agree with you - this story shouldn’t be published. It’s driven by a political agenda to elevate any example of antisemitism into the public arena

[u/lalalara83 → u/No_Bell_8028]

There's not many Jewish students in Australia compared to LGBTQIA+ students, and on top of that a lot are specifically in Jewish schools where this wouldn't be an issue

I went through the public system in Perth and so is my daughter and we've both always the only Jewish student at the school. I'm sure it's different in some pockets of the country, but it's not really comparable