In its recent editorial [Anthony Clark’s contributions, Our Views, Viewpoints, Jan. 29] Wednesday Journal irresponsibly speculated that Anthony Clark’s departure from the high school may have been because he was “caught up in an upset” over the Israel-Hamas war. The high school has consistently said, and the Chicago Tribune reported (https://www.chicagotribune.com/2025/01/07/oprf-resignation-agreement-includes-25k-payout-to-anthony-clark) that his departure was unrelated. Your own reporter (https://www.oakpark.com/2025/01/24/anthony-clark-resignation-settlement-oprf/) indicated it was due to an incident in late November.
More concerning than ignoring its own and other local reporting, however, is Wednesday Journal’s choice to minimize Mr. Clark’s behavior. Over the course of many months, Mr. Clark directly posted and/or amplified antisemitic hate and lies on his X account. These posts, and re-posts, included denial of the Oct. 7 atrocities, accusations of Jews being white supremacists, and recycled tropes about Jews controlling the media. Examples include:
Oct. 25, 2023: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1JnTdsgsRylZLT0hC1PY1sferdVZZcGc7/view
Dec. 27, 2023: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1n-Op3HgKoijnj6nUQHwLuAcdLR26MDOl/view
Dec. 27, 2023: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1dhf6g6XDBitV4L8dZdO4hX90WdNw3p2l/view
Jan. 22, 2024: https://archive.ph/Kyit5
March 20, 2024: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1FAefETrRzXHlZb3aOlW7dNDITighIc21/view
Mr. Clark was not “caught up” in anything. He made a choice to post and re-post antisemitic content and continued to do so after parents, colleagues and students expressed concern. It’s beyond disappointing that Wednesday Journal seems unable to call Mr. Clark’s atrocious social media behavior what it is. It’s antisemitism, hate and lies … plain and simple.
We agree with Wednesday Journal that Mr. Clark indeed did serve as a mentor and role model for many OPRF students and his focus on equity has had a positive impact across Oak Park. It is tragic that he has undermined his own good work by tearing down a religious minority. It is also tragic that our local paper is unable to address an issue as important and sensitive as antisemitism in our public schools in a transparent, accurate and fair manner.
The good news? It’s never too late to start.
Elyse Cutler, Giovanni Giannotti, Amy Guralnick, Henry and Sally Guralnick, Hilarie Lieb, Melissa Lutz, Adam and Kelly Oxer, Eddie Pont, Holly Utter and Corey Kessler, Renee Slade, Mike Walker and Kim Kramer, Lisa Wister
Oak Park and River Forest