Complaint: School district allowed “a pervasive hostile environment” after Oct. 7
New York, NY, July 30 2025 … ADL (the Anti-Defamation League), represented pro bono by the law firm Covington & Burling LLP, recently filed a federal civil rights complaint on behalf of Jewish parents whose children have been subjected to “egregious and persistent discrimination and harassment” at the hands of fellow students and teachers in the Baltimore City Public School System (“BCPSS”).
The Title VI complaint, filed with the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights, alleges that BCPSS has knowingly allowed its schools to become hostile environments for Jewish students, while neglecting to address numerous incidents of antisemitic harassment, bullying and discrimination.
“All schools have a fundamental obligation to maintain a learning environment that protects students from discrimination,” said James Pasch, ADL Vice President, Litigation. “On this essential measure of keeping its Jewish students safe from harassment and intimidation, Baltimore City Public Schools have failed.”
While antisemitism in BCPSS schools has been present for years, following the Oct. 7, 2023 Hamas terrorist attacks on Israel, Jewish students at Baltimore City Public Schools experienced what the complaint describes as “a pervasive hostile environment.” The complaint details how Jewish students have faced relentless harassment, including a teacher directing Nazi salutes at the sole Jewish student in his classroom, threats from classmates that “6 million [Jews] was not enough,” and comments including “all Jews should die.”
Additional examples of incidents alleged in the complaint include:
- Students at Mt. Washington School elementary and middle school subjecting Jewish classmates to antisemitic text messages linking to a “Zionist or Nazi?” quiz, performing daily Nazi salutes on school grounds, and making threats including “we should call Hamas and have them come here.”
- Persistent swastika graffiti appearing on school property at multiple schools, with few consequences for perpetrators.
- A poster reading “from the river to the sea” displayed at Baltimore City College high school, a message that conveys support for the destruction of Israel and denial of Jewish self-determination.
- A teacher who said to the class, “I’m about to go all Nazi on you.”
The complaint details how Jewish students have been forced to isolate themselves, drop classes, eat lunch alone, and hide their Jewish identities to avoid harassment. When parents requested concrete action plans and educational programming on antisemitism, schools offered inadequate responses or ignored their pleas entirely.
“The failure of Baltimore City Public Schools to address this hostile environment has left Jewish students feeling abandoned and unsafe,” said Tali Cohen, Regional Director of ADL Washington, D.C. “Rather than removing antisemitism from classrooms and protecting Jewish students, the district remained inactive and silent.”
The complaint urges the U.S. Department of Education to investigate the hostile environment in BCPSS schools and calls for the district to implement comprehensive remedies, including adopting the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) definition of antisemitism, providing mandatory training on antisemitism for all staff, implementing Holocaust and antisemitism education curricula, and enforcing zero-tolerance policies for antisemitic conduct.
“We are proud to once again serve as pro bono counsel to the ADL in its critical work combatting the dangerous rise of antisemitism, particularly in K-12 schools,” said Dan Shallman, Partner at Covington & Burling LLP. “We commend the brave parents and children who came forward to share their experiences in Baltimore schools, and we are committed to seeking all legal remedies available to ensure a learning environment free from the type of hate and discrimination we allege in the complaint.”
Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibits discrimination based on race, color and national origin, including discrimination against Jewish students on the basis of their actual or perceived shared ancestry or ethnic characteristics, in educational institutions that receive federal funding. Since Oct. 7, ADL has filed civil rights and legal complaints against public school districts and schools to address antisemitic environments for Jewish students, including the School District of Philadelphia, the Berkeley Unified School District, Concord-Carlisle Regional School District and Santa Ana Unified School District.
ADL is the leading anti-hate organization in the world. Founded in 1913, its timeless mission is “to stop the defamation of the Jewish people and to secure justice and fair treatment to all.” Today, ADL continues to fight all forms of antisemitism and bias, using innovation and partnerships to drive impact. A global leader in combating antisemitism, countering extremism and battling bigotry wherever and whenever it happens, ADL works to protect democracy and ensure a just and inclusive society for all. More at www.adl.org.
In an increasingly regulated world, Covington & Burling LLP provides corporate, litigation, and regulatory expertise to help clients navigate their most complex business problems, deals, and disputes. Founded in 1919, the firm has more than 1,300 lawyers in offices in Beijing, Boston, Brussels, Dubai, Frankfurt, Johannesburg, London, Los Angeles, New York, Palo Alto, San Francisco, Seoul, Shanghai, and Washington. The firm is frequently recognized for pro bono service, including 12 times being ranked the number one pro bono practice in the U.S. by The American Lawyer. Much of Covington’s pro bono work is anchored in meeting local needs, serving economically disadvantaged individuals and families in our surrounding communities, but the firm also has a long history of serving vulnerable clients and important causes throughout the U.S. and the world.