Nazi-Linked Quotation Found In Highland Park High School Yearbook

HIGHLAND PARK, IL — School officials halted distribution of the Highland Park High School yearbook because it included a pair of offensive senior quotations, including one attributed to Nazi leaders.

"If you tell a big enough lie, and you tell it often enough, it will be believed," was chosen by one member of the HPHS class of 2019 and appeared below the senior's photo in the initial printing of the yearbook. Though attributed to "Anonymous" in the yearbook, the saying has been credited to Adolf Hitler and Nazi propaganda chief Joseph Geobbels.

School officials said the Nazi-linked maxim is one of two offensive quotations allowed to find its way into print. Administrators apologized in a letter to HPHS parents, saying they only learned of the quotations after they were notified by students.

"Senior quotations are reviewed and approved by a team, and we take full responsibility for having missed the quotations that should have never been published in the yearbook," Township High School District 113 administrators said in a statement. A district spokesperson has not responded to an inquiry as to who is on that team, the nature of the second offensive quotation or a timeline for reprinting new yearbooks.

"Any act that disrupts the learning environment or makes our students feel unsafe is unacceptable and will not be tolerated. Our school stands for respect and inclusion," the district's statement said. "We strive to create a welcome and safe learning environment for our students and will continue to work with them in being thoughtful and responsible in the ways they express themselves."

Principal Deborah Finn told parents the school was "actively" working to "eliminate hate speech from our learning spaces," according to WMAQ-TV, which first reported the story Tuesday night. Finn said no more yearbooks would be distributed "until we are able to rectify the situation." One student told the station they were amazed that someone raised in Highland Park could "espouse these words from such an animal and continue to think it's OK."

Highland Park is the second high school to stop distribution of its yearbook due to offensive content this week. On Friday, news broke that Oak Park River Forest High School will pay more than $50,000 to reprint its yearbooks after 18 students were pictured displaying a hand gesture associated with white supremacist groups.

More: Suburban High School To Reprint Yearbooks Over Racist Hand Gesture