Boys in Brazil land school in scandal as self-styled Nazis saluting classmate as a Fuhrer creating a new ‘REICH’

A prestigious school in Brazil got dragged into a scandal after one of its students ran an election campaign styled after Adolf Hitler, recruiting a dozen supporters eager to have him as their ‘Furher.’

A photo of the candidate greeting his backers with a Nazi salute in a school classroom, with them responding likewise, was apparently made public by the teen himself. He thought it was a good idea not only to play at Nazism with his mates, but also to upload the proof on his campaign’s Instagram page.

The text comment with the photo said the would-be class speaker “promises to be the new Fürher,” who would take classmates “on a journey towards the construction of a new and innovative Reich.” The candidate was further described as a “friend of the people” and a “good orator” who promises to be the best class speaker in the school’s history, with the hashtag #Aryan and #FourthReich added for good measure.

The incriminating photo popped up on Wednesday and by Thursday the school management was aware of it. All 11 boys seen in the photo, aged between 16 and 17, according to Brazilian media, have been suspended from classes. So was the Instagram account where the picture had been posted.

The scandal occurred at the Colegio Santa Maria, a private Christian school in the city of Recife. The school management released a short statement saying it rejected any behavior that goes against Christian values or disrespects people based on their race or beliefs, and promised to take appropriate disciplinary action.

Before they come back to classes in mid-March, the students will have to write essays about Nazism and whether emulating the Nazis was an appropriate thing to do, the school principal told the newspaper Folha de Sao Paulo. She said some of the students had cried when they were being scolded for their behavior during a management meeting with their parents.

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