Marvin Ridge pulls yearbooks over Palestine senior quote

UNION COUNTY, N.C. — After Channel 9 received emails and calls from several parents offended by a senior’s yearbook quote in Union County, Marvin Ridge High School is no longer handing out the books.

Steve Starr says he was upset when his son, who is a senior at Marvin Ridge, showed him the senior quote of a fellow student.

“Tuesday evening, I saw the yearbook on our kitchen counter. I felt like enough is enough; as a parent, and specifically a Jewish parent, that it was my responsibility to stand up and speak out,” Starr told Channel 9’s Evan Donovan.

The student used a phrase as their senior quote under their picture in the yearbook, and the phrase refers to the land between the Jordan River and the Mediterranean Sea.

From the River to the Sea quote in Marvin Ridge Yearbook

According to the American Jewish Committee, when the phrase is used “with harmful intent ... it is anti-Semitic,” but the AJC added “not all who use the phrase use it with harmful intent.” The AJC says, “The call for the establishment of a Palestinian state in addition to the state of Israel ... is not anti-Semitic.”

Starr acknowledged that the issue is “incredibly complex and incredibly nuanced.”

“As a family, we’ve done a considerable amount of research and study, and we do feel we understand many of the different sides to it, and believe that there really is no place for hate speech,” Starr said.

Several parents called and emailed Channel 9 after they weren’t satisfied with the responses they got from Marvin Ridge administrators or the school district. Then at about 3:30 p.m. Friday, the district sent a statement saying it was launching an internal review.

The district says it’s now “currently reviewing ... editorial processes to prevent similar situations in the future” and has “taken steps to correct this matter” including halting yearbook distribution to students in Grades 10-12.

Some students, like Starr’s son, already got one.

“I think it should be removed from the yearbook. And again, I think this should be an opportunity to educate the community as a teaching moment,” Starr said.

The school district’s statement also said it “does not tolerate any discriminatory language” and that it plans to “distribute all corrected yearbooks as soon as possible.”

After the school district’s statement Friday afternoon, Channel 9 reached out to the Islamic Center of Charlotte for a comment. A spokesperson, Jibril Hough, issued the following statement.

“From The River To The Sea” is call for freedom, justice and equality for all of those who live from the river to the sea. Not just Israeli Jews but all including Palestinian Christians and Muslims who currently live under occupation and Israeli Apartheid. It’s a call that would make Israel a real democracy or perhaps for some include a Palestine state. But the greater point here is it’s a call for freedom not genocide or any form of Apartheid. This quote only offends those who are coming from a place of Supremacy and seek to oppress and exterminate Palestinians living in the region.

I would hope that Marvin Ridge High School and Union County Schools would reconsider censoring students language. Especially those who are making calls for freedom, justice and equality.

(VIDEO: 1 arrested after police clear out pro-Palestine encampment at UNC Charlotte)