School Board Draws Fire over Holocaust Assignment

Citizens of Rialto, California, blasted their local school board Wednesday night over an assignment telling students to decide if the Holocaust really happened.

Eighth graders were asked to write an essay about whether the Holocaust was an historical event, a "political scheme," or "propaganda tool."

The San Bernardino Sun reported that last week the Anti-Defamation League complained to school board interim Superintendent Mohammad Z. Islam.

The district initially defended the assignment.

But after angry citizens confronted the board Wednesday, the panel condemned the assignment, calling it "horribly inappropriate."

The eighth graders will now be taken to sensitivity training at the Museum of Tolerance in Los Angeles.