Parents outraged after Sydney teacher shows students pro-Hamas propaganda
A teacher at Davidson High School in Sydney's Northern Beaches is under investigation for showing students a video labelled as dangerous antisemitic propaganda.
The teacher, Bendeguz Devenyi-Botos, played a 16-minute video titled "Why doesnât international law apply to the West?" to his Year 10 commerce class on July 1.
The video, from the YouTube channel âSecond Thought,â calls Israel a "genocidal, apartheid regime" and expresses sympathy for terrorist group Hamas, describing it as "Palestinian resistance."
One Jewish family, whose 15-year-old daughter attends the school, has removed her from classes following the incident.
"It's just propaganda, scene after scene against Israel, against the US, against the whole western world, Australia included,â said the girl's father, Eran. The family, who moved from Israel when their daughter was one, were particularly distressed given their personal history with Hamas attacks.
Karen, the girl's mother, described the experience as deeply upsetting for her daughter.
"Being forced to sit 15 minutes in a class with peers watching it, knowing where we came from, where she comes from, it was really â I donât even have words how I felt,â she said.
The video, listed on Devenyi-Botosâ public YouTube page under âSchool Resources,â also accuses the "pro-Israel lobby" of "weaponising the Holocaust" and criticises US politicians.
Eran highlighted the damaging impact of such content being shown in a classroom setting.
"Sharing this kind of content as an authoritative figure inside a classroom, where you have a captured audience of 30 or 40 kids, that was horrifying," he said.
The teacher reportedly planned to show another video titled "Gaza: A Clear Case of Genocide" the following day. The family has informed the school their daughter will not return until Devenyi-Botos is suspended. "We feel itâs an unsafe environment for her and she will not be returning to school,â said Karen.
Northern Beaches councillor Michael Gencher and other families have also expressed concern.
âIt's one of the worst examples of agenda-driven rubbish that you can imagine being shown to kids," Gencher said.
The NSW Education Department is investigating the incident, stating that staff must remain politically neutral. Any breach of this conduct will result in appropriate action.

