Arizona school board member’s Nazi salute horrifies teacher union

School teacher unions are calling for the resignation of a Deer Valley Unified School District board member after she made a “Nazi salute” and said “heil’ at the end of a public meeting on May 26.

Boardmember Kimberly Fisher stretched out her arm, making the salute motion and repeating the word “heil” twice after the board president called for a vote to adjourn the meeting.

Fisher defended her actions in a Facebook video after the meeting, stating she made the gesture because she felt that the board had been under a “dictatorship” led by Board President Paul Carver and the district’s superintendent.

“All I could think of tonight was Hitler, so that’s why I said heil or whatever,” Fisher said in an eight-minute-long video.

Prior to the motion, Fisher and the board members were speaking on scheduling future meetings to discuss changes to district boundaries. Superintendent Curtis Finch stated they could not discuss the topic because it was on the meeting’s agenda. Then Carver quickly called for a vote to end the meeting, which prompted Fisher to make the salute.

The board members did not immediately react or acknowledge Fisher’s salute at the May 26 meeting.

This was not the first time Fisher has recently come under scrutiny. In October, she was slammed with a violation of Open Meeting Law by the Arizona Attorney General’s Office, The Daily Independent reported.

Fisher could not be immediately reached for comment.

How the community is reacting to Fisher’s Nazi salute

The local chapter of the Anti-Defamation League, an organization focused on advocating against antisemitism and hate, denounced Fisher’s use of the salute.

“We unequivocally condemn this behavior that glorifies Nazis and Hitler. Regardless of intent, these actions instill fear in the community and are unbecoming of officials entrusted with educating children,” said Sarah Kader, the deputy regional director of ADL Desert, in a social media post.

The Arizona Education Association and the Deer Valley Education Association are calling for Fisher’s resignation.

“Kimberly Fisher should apologize to the DVUSD community and step down,” the state union group wrote on X.

The local teacher union wrote in a Facebook statement that they were “horrified and disgusted” to see Fisher’s actions.

“Any leader who uses a Nazi salute during a School Board meeting is unfit for public service. There is no justification for this behavior,” the union wrote.

Boardmember Stephanie Simacek, in a statement, said “this is what antisemitism looks like when people get comfortable” and called for an “immediate censure.”

“I am calling for accountability. And I am calling on every parent, educator, and elected official Republican or Democrat — to stand up and say clearly: THIS HAS NO PLACE HERE,” she wrote in the statement.

Simacek is also a house member in the Arizona State Legislature and is running for a state senate seat.

She wrote, “What happened in that room was not a joke.”

The school district “does not condone, support, or endorse gestures or language associated with hate, discrimination, intimidation, or violence in any form,” said Kayla Pologa, a spokesperson for Deer Valley, in a written statement.

“As an elected official, Mrs. Fisher speaks and acts independently,” Pologa wrote.

She said Fisher’s views don’t reflect nor should be attributed to other board members or members of the school district.

Who is Kimberly Fisher?

Fisher has been a Deer Valley School District parent for 24 years, according to her biography on the district’s website. She had two children graduate from the district and her third is being homeschooled in his final year, her biography states.

She had previously served on the board from 2015 to 2018.

In 2017, Fisher was the school board president and was criticized for a social media exchange with a teacher.

She was reelected in 2020. Fisher’s current term ends in 2028.