A Leon High School student decided to dress as a Nazi soldier for Halloween, donning a black helmet and a black jacket with a swastika brandished on the arm and front.
Leon County Schools spokesperson Chris Petley said as soon as the student arrived on campus other students noticed the costume and immediately alerted administration. The student was sent home early from school and will be disciplined in accordance with the student code of conduct.
“We are aware of an incident in which a student came to school dressed as a Nazi soldier. This behavior is deeply offensive, hurtful, and entirely contrary to the values of our school community. Symbols associated with Nazism represent hatred, violence, and genocide. They have no place in our schools, where our mission is to promote respect, understanding, and inclusion for all students,” Petley wrote in a statement.
Leon High School Principal Scotty Crowe sent a reminder to the school community that “hateful or offensive” costumes will not be tolerated.
“We want to remind everyone that Leon High School is committed to maintaining a safe, respectful, and inclusive environment for all members of our community. While we encourage creativity and fun during Halloween activities, hateful, discriminatory, or culturally insensitive costumes will not be tolerated,” Crowe wrote in an email after the incident occurred.
The Holocaust Education Resource Council also weighed in to denounce the student’s actions and to emphasize the importance of Holocaust education. The organization said the student’s costume, which was shared widely on Instagram, was a “painful reminder of the ignorance, hate, and indifference that allowed one of the darkest chapters in human history to occur.”
“This incident underscores an urgent truth: Holocaust education is not optional — it is essential. Every student in Leon County deserves to understand the consequences of hate, intolerance, and silence,” the organization wrote in a release. “We call on Leon County Schools to invite HERC into every middle and high school classroom to teach about the Holocaust, antisemitism, and the importance of standing up to hate in all its forms. Education is the most powerful tool we have to prevent such incidents from happening again.”
Holocaust education is a Florida benchmark standard, Petley said, so students learn about it each year. Teachers and school administrators also sit in for Holocaust education training annually.
Alaijah Brown covers children & families for the Tallahassee Democrat. She can be reached at ABrown1@gannett.com. Follow her on Twitter/X: @AlaijahBrown3.
This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: Florida student in Nazi Halloween costume sent home