Thursday, December 23, 1999 Older Editions

Confronting hate: Students suspended, banned from activities

By Rebecca Lipchitz

Five students arrested in connection with the burning of a swastika into an Andover playing field were suspended for three days, and have been banned from extra-curricular activities, including sports, for the rest of the year.

While students, teachers and school administrators say the burning Nov. 23 is an incident to take seriously, many say they believe the vandalism was just a prank.

Two weeks ago, police arrested five male Andover High School students between the ages of 15 and 17, and charged them with arson, civil rights violations, defacing school property, and vandalizing real estate.

The two students arrested who are not considered juveniles because they are 17 or older are Paul M. Wysocki and Keith Jackson. Wysocki, a star varsity basketball player, is now banned from playing in his senior year.

Opinions on campus at Andover High School about the incident are varied. Some students say the punishment was too severe, and others say it was not enough.

"Yeah, I'm mad at them," says Alison Shurman, a junior at AHS who is Jewish.

"They were careless and stupid, but I don't feel it was hateful. I don't think they understood how deeply people could be affected by that symbol. That doesn't mean they should get away with it," she says.

Others say the students who were involved in the incident made a mistake.

"It was blown out of proportion by the media," says one student who asked not to be named.

Andover High School Interim Principal Bruce MacDonald says the ban on sports and other school activities was necessary.

"It would be ludicrous to have people who have done that to walk around in letter jackets or play on the field. We didn't want them to be representing the school. What they did was very, very wrong. It doesn't matter if it was stupid," MacDonald says.

David Fazio, who teaches physical education and coaches boys basketball and boys and girls cross-country track, says, "I really believe that it was ignorance and stupidity in that choice and hopefully everybody will learn from it."

Wysocki played well enough to earn all-conference honors last year, and was expected to earn a basketball scholarship this year.

"We're more concerned about him as a person than as a ballplayer right now," Fazio says.

"I haven't quit on him. Were going to help him with schools and prep schools. We're trying to keep in mind that there is more to life than basketball," he says.

Led by social studies teacher Craig Simpson, other high school staff and students, a student discussion group has been formed to deal with the topic and asked students to sign a banner declaring "Hearts and Hands Against Intolerance" available in the cafeteria Wednesday after Townsman press time.

Students who aim to address the issue met with Superintendent of Schools Dr. Claudia Bach this week, and are scheduled to meet with School Committee members next week to discuss the issue.

Bach told School Committee members Tuesday night that many students wanted to assure her that most students are aware of the hateful implications of a swastika.

"It is clear that many students are embarrassed and ashamed," by the incident," Bach said.

"It's hard for anyone of my generation to associate the (swastika) with anything other than prison camps, gas ovens and tyranny," MacDonald says.

Despite the agreement that swastikas are a generally accepted symbol of hate, committee members and administrators say they want to make the incident into an opportunity to educate students.

"It's obvious that the swastika is a symbol about which there is not much ambiguity," said School Committee Chairman Eric Nadworny. But he said he believes education about the symbolism is important.

"It's not something that is done in isolation," Nadworny said.

Tom Meyers, president of the Andover teachers' union, says the swastika incident had equally dangerous racial implications as two other incidents this year that were not discussed by the School Committee.

Meyers said racially intolerant remarks toward a Hispanic student, and a message painted on the Rock this fall that read "Kill the Indians," should have been considered by the committee when they arose.

"I'm not saying one racial issue is any more important than another, but we have to be out on top of those issues," Meyers told the School Committee on Tuesday.

Each committee member commented on the issue.

Tim McCarron said he wants to see the School Committee consider the policy on students who are charged with crimes.

"We need, as a system, to look at what is equitable punishment for actions. I had to resign my teaching position because I had my life threatened by a student. That student was not expelled," McCarron said, adding that he was not teaching in Andover at the time.

He said he does not necessarily want the administration to rule differently in this case. "I'm not looking for a severe reaction," he says.

Rabbi Robert Goldstein of Temple Emmanuel offered some support for the way the incident has been handled by the Andover schools.

"There's been desire to keep the kids informed and to keep the community informed," he says. "My feeling is, the school is now making an effort to educate the kids about what this means.

"But this represents very hateful feelings toward many religious and ethnic groups. People need to understand that sometimes symbols mean something," he says. "I think it needs to be used as a teaching opportunity, and my impression is that's what the schools are doing."