I was in the midst of my first draft of an article on anti-Semitism when I got the call.
Under normal circumstances when the school phone number flashes across my screen, I catch myself mentally flipping through probable scenarios: Did she forget her lunch? Did he forget his homework? Is someone sick?
But this time was different. The principal called me from her cellphone. I imagined the worst (could they be in the hospital?!) and answered the call with, “Is everything OK?”
“Well, yes and no,” she said, and went on to explain that another student had called my 13-year-old daughter a “rich, spoiled Jew.”