MIAMI BEACH, FLA. (WSVN) - An antisemitic message carved into the side of a bathroom stall at a Miami Beach high school has triggered an investigation by school district officials.
The school district announced they would begin investigating after the phrase “[expletive] Jews” was found scratched onto the metal panel of a bathroom stall inside Miami Beach Senior High School, which is located just steps away from the Miami Beach Holocaust Memorial.
Video capturing that alarming message was forwarded to Miami Beach Commissioner David Suarez, who is Jewish, over the weekend.
“Someone close to the school sent me this video,” said Suarez.
He said the video sent to him was taken on Sunday but he believes that message had been scrawled on the stall for some time.
“What’s worse is, based on what the video shows, it looks like it’s been there for a long time,” said Suarez. “It’s very unfortunate that kids go to school every day in this bathroom and they see that scribbled on the wall.”
The school’s principal, Al Torossian, alerted parents to the chilling discovery and the start of an investigation in a recorded message sent out on Monday.
“The Miami-Dade School Police Department opened an immediate investigation to find out who was responsible,” Torossian said in the recording.
Torossian goes on to explain that the carving was reported by a church group that was renting the school facilities at the time. He added that the hateful message has since been covered.
“Antisemitism and intolerance have absolutely no place at Miami Beach Senior High,” the recording of Torossian said.
Miami-Dade County Public Schools also released a statement on the incident:
“Miami-Dade County Public Schools (M-DCPS) is deeply disturbed by an antisemitic message reported over the weekend by a member of the visiting church group. Hate and antisemitism have no place in our schools or community. The message has been painted over, and Miami-Dade Schools Police are investigating to identify those responsible. Maintenance crews are repairing the restroom to meet M-DCPS standards. We remain committed to safe, inclusive schools, and stand united against intolerance.”
Still, Suarez said the district needs to do better, pointing out the state of the bathroom, which also showed one stall that was boarded shut, is a sign of negligence that, he believes, allowed the cruel remark to stay plastered on the wall and linger in front of students’ faces for an unknown amount of time.
“I think it’s time to really wake up to the fact that antisemitism is real, it’s in our schools,” said Suarez.
He argued that the failure to catch this message sooner was due in part to it singling out Jewish people. Had the message targeted other minorities, Suarez said, it would’ve been addressed much sooner.
“If there was another ethnic group scribbled on the wall, I guarantee that would have been fixed in an hour. But since it only has to do with Jews, it can wait,” Suarez said.
Aside from the vile etching, Suarez also called attention to the bathroom’s dirty appearance.
“I would really appreciate the school board doing a better job of keeping their schools clean,” he said.
Another statement from district officials refuted the commissioner’s claims, saying the bathrooms are inspected daily by custodians and, had any staff members found the hateful vandalism, it would have been addressed immediately.
Copyright 2026 Sunbeam Television Corp. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.