An Israeli high school student was arrested and questioned by police for doing a Nazi salute during a school trip to Auschwitz, Israeli media reported on Sunday.
The teenager from Kiryat Bialik was on his school’s field trip to Poland when he did the gesture under the entrance sign to the camp.
He was questioned for two hours by Polish police and was fined approximately NIS 1,500 after security guards observed him performing the salute. The museum also captured the incident on its security cameras; the footage was handed over to the police.
Polish police charged him with promoting Nazism, local media reported. Performing a seig heil is illegal in Poland, and carries a potential sentence of up to two years in prison.
Could easily see this radicalizing him if he isn’t already.
It’s easy to make dumb edgy jokes as a teenager without actually believing whatever you’re joking about.
Humiliating this kid like this is really just trying to make an example out of him rather than solving any problem or helping him in any way.
This could’ve easily been solved by the teacher taking him aside and explaining to him why that’s not acceptable. If he keeps doing it after being warned, then it’s fine to escalate.
If you go there and don’t already know what’s going on you failed yourself already. Stupidity does not protect against punishment.