The debut of this year’s Malibu High School yearbook erupted in controversy after a small swastika was discovered in a photograph on the book’s back cover.
When a student pointed out the image to Principal Michael Matthews, he went to the yearbook advisor who knew nothing about it.
The yearbook, whose theme this year is “Malibu: Then and Now,” is filled with historical photos of the city. The photo on the back cover was dated from 1961, and the swastika was graffiti on a wall in the picture.
Several parents met with Matthews on Monday to work out a solution. Along with a letter of apology sent to the families of the students, Matthews enclosed a sticker to place over the image.
“Everyone should be offended by this symbol, and I apologize to all of you for the back cover of the yearbook,” Matthews said in his letter.
Matthews maintains the photo’s inclusion was a mistake and that neither the yearbook advisor nor the administrative staff noticed the image until it was too late.
“It is our firm belief that this photo was not chosen because of the swastika, rather it was an unfortunate oversight,” he wrote.
One concerned parent believes the school should offer to replace the covers. Doing so, however, would cost more than $100,000, Matthews said.
Many students acknowledge the incident as a mistake and did not notice the image until it was pointed out to them.
“It’s not current testament into any kind of anti-Semitic views,” Mollie Vandor, a senior, said. “There’s no reason to believe it was intentional at all.”