My name is J. Stein. I am writing this editorial because I am afraid for our country’s educational system and our youth. I know many people who were survivors of the Holocaust and what we are seeing is history repeating itself. The indoctrination of our youth to hate this great country that has done more good for the world than any other country ever has is reminiscent of the way the Nazis indoctrinated impressionable youth in the Hitler Youth groups.
Across the country, hundreds of thousands of students are walking out of schools, flooding streets with signs and slogans which many barely understand what the signs are talking about, if at all. Even when protests are peaceful, like a recent anti-ICE demonstration in Nyack, the underlying issues are clear. Local restaurants and stores may have been inconvenienced, but what stands out is that many youths could not explain what ICE actually is. When asked, some called it “Gestapo,” “Trump’s soldiers,” or “murderers”—yet none could say what the letters I-C-E stand for. Emotion and slogans often replace knowledge or understanding.
These youth-led protests are rarely spontaneous. Many are organized, funded, and guided online, with instructions on what to chant, what signs to carry, and how to coordinate signals. Peer pressure and social media amplify participation, often rewarding performance over understanding. Young people, eager to belong or be seen as “morally right,” frequently repeat slogans without researching the issues or considering consequences or knowing what they are protesting against.
The consequences can be serious. On Ivy League campuses, Jewish students have been threatened, harassed, and made to feel unsafe, while synagogues—not mosques—have been vandalized. Targeting individuals or communities in this way is antisemitism, plain and simple. Political protest is a right; intimidation or harassment is never acceptable or legal.
History offers a cautionary lesson. The uncritical repetition of slogans, extreme imagery, and moral absolutism displayed in some youth-led protests bear uncomfortable psychological similarities to early extremist movements in Europe, where youth were mobilized to adopt ideology without independent reasoning. While today’s students are not Nazis, the pattern of unthinking conformity, emotional mobilization, and ideological indoctrination is a warning worth noting.
Meanwhile, media and social pressure often punish dissenting voices. Students who question prevailing narratives risk humiliation, online threats, or future repercussions, such as failing grades. These actions force conformity and discourage critical thinking.
Violence, harassment, and intimidation are never acceptable. Activism should be rooted in knowledge, history, and empathy—not slogans handed down by organizers. Outrage can be a force for good—but only when it is grounded in understanding, responsibility, and independent thought.