A UNICEF club at Desert Mountain High School (DMHS) allegedly told meeting attendees to side with Hamas in the ongoing Israel-Palestine conflict. Hamas is a terrorist group and the de facto governing entity of the Gaza strip, the heart of the ongoing conflict.
In images posted to X (formerly Twitter), the club declared that Israel was an apartheid state, desired to eradicate Muslims, and was the aggressor in the ongoing conflict.
Specifically, the club declared that Israel has been illegally occupying, taking, and settling on land belonging to Palestinians; that Israel had engaged in ethnic cleansing and apartheid by forcibly displacing and discriminating against Palestinians; and that Israel unjustly tortured and imprisoned Palestinians, including 80 percent of Palestinian children.
We're going to share a few of the slides that were presented by the UNICEF club at Desert Mountain High School, and apparently approved by principal, Dr. Lisa Hirsch.
— Scottsdale Unites for Educational Integrity (@ScottsdaleUnite) November 3, 2023
The club also notified club members of an upcoming fundraiser to submit proceeds to UNICEF Gaza, and plans to reroute Halloween fundraising funds to Gaza and the Palestine Children’s Relief Fund.
A candidate for Arizona Department of Education Superintendent, Shiry Sapir, said that the meeting was an endangerment to Jewish students by issuing a false representation of the Israel-Palestine conflict escalated last month by the terrorist organization Hamas.
“Remind [DMHS] that publicly funded schools aren’t supposed to partake in propaganda and anti-Semitic rhetoric,” said Sapir.
Sapir urged district leadership to implement a preemptive plan to prevent retaliation against Jewish students, and for a representative of Israel come to speak at the school to the students present at the UNICEF club meeting.
Sapir learned of the incident after receiving a report from a parent, who also reported filing a complaint with the school about the club meeting.
“I wish [my daughter] took pics or video but she said all they spoke about was how Israel is the aggressor and Jews want to kill all Muslims,” said the parent. “How Israel took the land illegally and is committing war crimes. Craziest propaganda.”
The principal, Lisa Hirsch, said in a letter to the DHMS community that she reviewed and approved the slide content before the club meeting. Hirsch emphasized that school clubs were optional and intended to be safe spaces that foster inclusivity. However, she noted that school officials would be reviewing club meetings to ensure content aligned with principles of free speech and mutual respect.
“We are dedicated to promoting an environment that encourages open dialogue, the sharing of diverse perspectives, and constructive conversations while respecting the rights and values of every member of our school community,” said Hirsch.
Desert Mountain High School Principal Lisa Hirsch admits she reviewed the anti-Israel, UNICEF presentation and allowed it to proceed in the name of "inclusion."
Apparently, wishing the eradication of a population is "offensive and troubling" to "some." pic.twitter.com/vpc5nKGVLD
— Scottsdale Unites for Educational Integrity (@ScottsdaleUnite) November 3, 2023
There are four other UNICEF high school clubs in Arizona in addition to DMHS: Basis Chandler High School, Basis Scottsdale, Basis Peoria, and Hamilton High School.
Corinne Murdock is a reporter for AZ Free News. Follow her latest on Twitter, or email tips to corinne@azfreenews.com.
This week, Desert Mountain High School (DMHS) put on a play exploring the sexuality of kids. It’s the latest display of the school’s promotion of minors’ sexualization.
The play, “She Kills Monsters,” tells the story of a high school senior, Agnes, discovering a journal containing the sexuality-based confessions of her younger, 15-year-old sister, Tilly, who died in a car accident.
The play comes in two editions: the traditional script for adults, and a “young adventurers” script intended for minors. The DMHS newsletter and flyer advertising their rendition of the play didn’t disclose whether the school would use the traditional or “young adventurers” version. The minor-oriented script retains frequent descriptions of and innuendos to sexual behaviors along with frequent expletives. The play displays the younger sister fantasizing about lesbian relationships with various “sexy” fictional female characters from a role-playing game, Dungeons & Dragons, including a demonic, leather-clad “dominatrix,” succubuses, and an elf.
The script describes Agnes as an overwhelmingly “average,” “drab” teenager who lacks creativity and understanding for her sister, while Tilly is depicted as an adventurous, bold, creative, and wise individual.
DMHS sold the play tickets for $10 to $12 each.
In a 2020 review of the play, New York Times described the minor-oriented script as a “hot school play” for youth to enjoy.
“This is a story in which girls wield swords, queer kids are cool, and nerds rule the earth,” stated the review.
DMHS is friendly to the exploration of children’s sexuality on campus, though they’re not as friendly to the parents who question what occurs during this exploration. In 2021, AZ Free News reported how DMHS delayed responding to parental inquiries about the Gender & Sexualities Alliance (GSA) chapter on campus.
Last year, a DMHS psychology teacher, Mackenzie Onofry, taught students unapproved material on the findings of debunked sexologist Alfred Kinsey. The material declared that only four percent of men and two percent of women were exclusively heterosexual, that sexuality is a continuum, that homosexuality spans human history and is a natural part of the animal world, that sexual orientation isn’t a choice and is immutable, that conversion therapy doesn’t work, that women have more erotic plasticity (sexual interests) than men, that homosexuality is a gene location on the X chromosome, that fetal testosterone exposure causes attraction to women, and that chances of male homosexuality increase by one-third with each son born.
Onofry remains employed by the district, according to her LinkedIn page.
DMHS’ district, Scottsdale Unified School District (SUSD) is aware and supportive of the high school’s initiatives for exploring minors’ sexuality and proclivity for keeping parents in the dark. Last month, it was discovered that SUSD falsely denied the existence of a transgender support plan for nearly a year.
Last year, SUSD’s social justice professionals promoted a drag queen storytime.
That summer, SUSD unintentionally provided a parent with blank transgender patient intake forms for a Phoenix hormone and gender transition facility in response to a records request regarding communications concerning DMHS librarian and GSA Club advisor Michelle Schulke.
Earlier that year it was discovered that Schulke was behind plans for sexuality and anti-racist programming for minors. Schulke also remains employed by the district.
SUSD Superintendent Scott Menzel has defended the normalization of sexualized campuses since joining the district in 2020. In response to parents upset by kindergarten and elementary school staff members discussing gender ideology to their children without consent, Menzel issued accusations of Civil Rights violations.
“To target an individual publicly for their personal identity — in this case the individual against whom this complaint was filed does not identify as either male or female — is overt discrimination and inconsistent with state and federal law as well as school district policy,” said Menzel.
Menzel also admonished parents and community members opposed to the district’s GSA clubs, calling them “bullies.”
Corinne Murdock is a reporter for AZ Free News. Follow her latest on Twitter, or email tips to corinne@azfreenews.com.
