Wisconsin Responds to Baraboo Students' 'Nazi Salute' Photo

BARABOO, WI -- Chanting "love, not hate," members of the community gathered outside the Sauk County Courthouse Monday in a show of solidarity after a photo published on Twitter showed the Baraboo High School's 2019 senior class making what appeared to be a Nazi salute on the same steps earlier this year.

According to a Baraboo News-Republic article published late Monday, nearly 100 people chanted against hate and brandished signs advocating love and peace. Local photographer Stephanie Shanks said she felt moved to organize a new group photo.

The Baraboo School District said it plans to pursue any and all measures, including legal, after a photo of members of its senior class ended up on Twitter. The post, which has since been deleted yet captured in a subsequent Twitter post below, shows a group of young men in formal attire on the steps of a building, making what appears to be a Nazi salute.

According to multiple media reports, the photo was taken from the steps of the Sauk County Courthouse and included students from Baraboo High School's 2018 junior class.

A coalition led by the Milwaukee Jewish Federation and anticipates working with the Baraboo School District to prevent future incidents such as the one recorded by a prom photographer earlier this year:

"We are alarmed by the disturbing display of anti-Semitism by a group of Baraboo High School students. Though the incident apparently took place last May, it reflects a rising swell of anti-Semitism and other forms of bigotry. We are particularly concerned with the prevalence of bigotry within schools; more than 25 percent of all the recorded anti-Semitic incidents in Wisconsin last year took place among students or on campus ... As we know, acts of hate begin with hateful expressions. Such expressions must be a call to action for schools and families to educate youth to respect diversity and to embrace difference. The values that will hold us together must be taught and reinforced, lest we see the continued rise of hate and its consequences."

District Sends Letter

In an letter sent to families Monday morning, Superintendent Dr. Lori Mueller said that the photo was taken last spring of a group of Baraboo students. The letter reads in part:

"Early this morning, a photo that was taken last spring of some Baraboo School District Students who appear to be making extremely inappropriate gestures began circulating on social media. The district has confirmed at this time that the photo was not taken on school property or at a school-sponsored event.

The school district is investigating this situation and is working with parents, staff and local authorities. If the gesture is what it appears to be, the district will pursue any and all available and appropriate actions, including legal, to address the issue."

The school district on Monday also put students at the High School in a "soft hold" for their safety. A "soft hold" keeps students on campus during the day except in cases in which a student had their parent's permission to go off campus.

The Baraboo Police Department stated Monday morning that they are conducting an investigation into the photo at the request of the school district.

One student has reportedly reacted to the photo publicly on Twitter.

"My name is Jordan Blue, I am the boy captured in the photo to the far right. The photo was taken during our Junior Prom photos. I am clearly uncomfortable, with what was happening. I couldn't leave the photo as it was taken within 5 seconds," he stated on Twitter. "The photographer took the photos telling us to make the sign. I knew what my morals were and it was not to salute something I firmly didn't believe in. I attend BHS and these classmates have bullied me since entering middle school. I have struggled with it my entire life and nothing has changed."

The prom photographer, Wheel Memories, has pulled the photo from its website as of Monday morning, and released a statement related to the incident.

"The internet can be a wonderful tool but for some there is an overwhelming urge to destroy. The destruction may not be physical but instead it can be bullying that is intellectual or emotional. To anyone that was hurt I sincerely apologize," they wrote.

An earlier version of this article incorrectly stated that Wheel Memories had been hired by the district.

Youtube Screen Shot