Swift amended her statement after receiving backlash from members of the community who claimed to be offended by her use of the term.
The former superintendent of Ann Arbor Public Schools (AAPS) removed the word “terrorist” from a statement about Hamas’s attack on Israel after a few members of the school community pressured her to do so.
Superintendent Jeanice Swift sent out a district-wide email on October 11, 2023, with a statement titled “AAPS Statement on Terrorist Attacks in Israel” that read, “We are devastated by the terrorist attacks in Israel, and we are heartbroken to hear of the loss of life occurring over recent days in both Israel and Gaza.” Days later, after community backlash over the initial statement, she amended the statement, removing the word “terrorist” to describe Hamas.
One member of the community told Swift in an email that her original statement was “inappropriate,” and said, “What about the Muslim families… I don’t support Israel I don’t appreciate receiving this email… Do better!!!” Another person, who claimed to be a student, told the superintendent via email that he was “deeply disappointed and disrespected by [her] use of words regarding this email. You claim that ‘Isreal’ [sic] is under ‘terrorist attacks’ while Palestinians have endured decades of killing from these people.”
In response to both emails, Swift said that she was “deeply sorry for sharing words that made you feel disrespected and disappointed. Following the feedback you shared with me on Wednesday, I amended the Superintendent Statement to omit the use of the word ‘terrorist,’ both in the title and in the opening sentence of the message . . . I am grateful for your outreach to me, and will take more care with the choice of words in any future messages.”
The emails were obtained by the parental-rights watchdog group Parents Defending Education and provided exclusively to National Review. Swift resigned in September 2023 (due to a prior, unrelated scandal) and was allowed to serve as superintendent until the district hired a replacement, or until the end of October 2023.
“It shows a complete lack of leadership and moral clarity when a school superintendent apologizes for using the word ‘terrorist’ to describe the massacre of October 7 and then amends the statement by omitting the word,” said Erika Sanzi, PDE’s director of outreach. “She let the bullies on her staff win and there is no excuse for that.”
AAPS did not respond to a request for comment on Swift’s decision to amend the statement.
Later, in January, the AAPS school board approved a resolution calling for a cease-fire in Gaza — one of the first public-school districts to weigh-in on the international conflict. The district said in its resolution that it “encourages educators within the Ann Arbor School District to facilitate informed and respectful dialogue about the conflict.” Four of AAPS’s seven board members voted in favor of the resolution, two of whom posted a joint statement on social media on October 13, that also failed to condemn Hamas as “terrorists.”
“Like many of you, we’re heartbroken by the ongoing violence, suffering, & loss of life among Israeli & Palestinian people. We value all of our students & families. Sadly, we know that recent events have impacted many in our schools & community with ties to that region,” board president Rima Mohammad and board trustee Jeff Gaynor wrote. “We know that this is a particularly difficult time for teachers, students, staff, administrators & families who are personally affected by the attacks & response. We encourage tapping school counseling teams & local school leadership if you or a student is struggling.”
Gaynor also thanked Swift in an email obtained by PDE for “modifying your original statement to recognize that actions from both Hamas and the Israelis resulted in the senseless deaths of so many innocent people.”
Mohammad has since accused Israel of “genocide” and “ethnic cleansing.”
Two AAPS high schools held student-led “Walk Out for Palestine” events in May. Organizers said on Instagram that “absolutely no anti semitic [sic] slogans, symbols, or statements” were allowed during the walk-out. High schoolers instead held signs that read “stop genocide,” and chanted, “Israel bombs, USA pays. How many kids have we killed today?”
One AAPS student equated the war with the Holocaust in a speech delivered during the walk-out: “When Germany was trying to wipe out the Jews, America stood by and did nothing. Look where it got us. Six million Jews killed. This is the same thing. We are killing people because of something they cannot control. Because they live somewhere. And that is not right. [The Jews] are killing people for no reason.” AAPS Director of Communications Andrew Cluley said that instructors were told to stay “content neutral” during the demonstration.