The two teachers say students greeted each other with Nazi salutes, threatened to beat up immigrant classmates and were homophobic and sexist.

Two teachers in eastern Germany tried to counter the far-right activities of students at their high school. They counselled bullies who threatened to beat up immigrant classmates. They gave more lessons about their country’s Nazi past. They invited in a Black rapper to talk about mutual respect.

None of it helped. In desperation, Laura Nickel and Max Teske wrote a public letter describing an atmosphere of intimidation at Mina Witkojc School in Burg. They reported students greeting each other with the Nazi salute, scratching swastikas on their desks and playing music with racist lyrics in the hallways.

“Teachers and students who openly fight against far-right students and teachers fear for their safety,” the two said in the letter they sent to local newspapers, adding schools “cannot provide a home for the enemies of democracy.”

Nickel, who taught English and history, and Teske, a maths and geography teacher, were unprepared for the backlash. A letter from an anonymous group of parents demanded their dismissals. Stickers with their pictures and the caption “Piss off to Berlin” plastered lampposts near campus. On social media, someone declared a desire to “hunt them down.”