Several high school students in La Quinta have been disciplined for their involvement in a late-night game of tag called "Beat the Jew " on school grounds last month.
The game, which gathered participants via Facebook, is a complicated contest of tag, in which "Jews" are taken, blind-folded, by car to a place off campus and have to make their way back to base, while pursued by "Nazis", said Sherri Johnstone, assistant superintendent for personnel at the Desert Sands Unified School District.
Organizers had put up a Facebook page announcing the game that was "friended" by some 40 students, of which seven participated, Johnstone said.
The game took place on the night of May 20 on the grounds of La Quinta High School. No one was hurt.
Hearing of the event later, the district launched an investigation that ended Friday. Several students who participated that night and others who organized the event have been disciplined.
The game appears to have originally been called "Fugitive," then morphed at some point into "Beat the Jew," Johnstone said.
“The fact that this is a game is intolerable,” Johnstone said.
She said the district has been working with rabbis and others in the community who have offered to hold tolerance workshops at the school.
A police investigation into the incident has not concluded, she said.
Posted By: Siebra Muhammad
Sunday, June 6th 2010 at 2:22PM
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