This story was first published in The Copper Courier’s daily newsletter. Want to join the conversation? Sign up here.
You’ve probably seen an image circulating of a Deer Valley school board member making a Nazi salute.
As she made the gesture, she also said “heil, heil” during Deer Valley Unified School District’s May 26 meeting.
The gesture came after Fisher had a tense exchange with governing board president Paul Carver Jr., and Carver asked for a motion to adjourn.
Fisher later said in a Facebook post that her actions were meant to suggest that Carver was acting like a dictator.
The Deer Valley Education Association, the district’s union, called for Fisher to resign, saying, “There is no justification for this behavior.”
I asked what you thought about the incident, and here’s what you said:
💬 “As abhorrent as the Nazi salute is, its use by board member Fisher could be construed as an act of free speech. It appears she feels that there is an aura of dictatorship surrounding adequate representation and accessibility at Deer Valley school board meetings, thus her use of the salute and “Heil, heil” outburst indicate her disdain. I would suggest that to oust her would be to deny her the right to express herself freely.” — Lynn M.
💬 “I live in Tucson but this is soooo wrong yes she needs to be fired immediately we have no room in this world for this misconduct. One person who thinks he’s a dictator is enough!!” — Jeanine C.
💬 “As a teacher in Deer Valley Unified School District, I was horrified to see and hear what Kim Fisher did. Ms. Fisher said she believed that Mr. Carver was acting like a dictator. However, there is a huge difference between personal thoughts and public actions. The public actions of the Nazi salute and shouting ‘Heil, heil!”‘invokes a dark chapter of human history full of fear and inhumane treatment of millions upon millions of people. Under no circumstances should anyone associated with public education do anything to recall Hitler and his regime. The DVUSD vision statement is ‘Graduating lifelong learners who will successfully compete, lead, and positively impact the world.’ We believe that our graduates, and anyone associated with DVUSD from students to adults, should engage with our communities and build them up continually in positive and constructive ways. Ms. Fisher’s words and actions have done the exact opposite. She owes our students and our community a better moral example.” — Marie B.
💬 “Her response was not an endorsement of Nazism, but a call-out to someone acting like dictator. Pretty clear. Tone down the rhetoric.” — KC M.
💬 “We need to be able to disagree without being disagreeable. Offensive gestures have no place in civil discourse.” — Bonnie C.
💬 “That is just dumb, she needs to go.” — Cal M.
💬 “What Kimberly Fisher did at the May 26 meeting was despicable, full stop. The Nazi salute is not a rhetorical device; it’s a symbol of genocide, and no amount of political frustration justifies invoking it in a public forum, let alone one that serves students and families. What makes it worse is the response. A Facebook post explaining that she was implying Carver was acting like a “dictator” isn’t candor — it’s deflection. Public officials owe their constituents honesty and accountability, especially when they’ve caused harm. Framing a Nazi salute as a clever metaphor and moving on doesn’t meet that standard. The Deer Valley Education Association is right to call for her resignation. A school board member should be someone students, parents, and staff can trust to represent them with dignity. Fisher has shown she can’t do that.” — Nathan L.
💬 “Yes, I think she should resign, but that will not stop the problem. She needs education about the emotional history of that sign, not just to Jews and GLBT folks, but to everyone who cares about respectful and decent interaction, whether one agrees or disagrees with another.” — Judy R.
💬 “Thank you for reporting this very disturbing event. I am appalled by Ms. Fisher’s use of a blatantly antisemitic gesture, accompanied by the words ‘Heil, Heil’ in reference to Hitler. But I am also shocked that, according to the article ‘The other board members did not appear to react to the incident.’ Why not? For Ms. Fisher to equate what she perceived as ‘working under a dictatorship’ with a nazi regime that murdered 17 million people, 6 million of whom were Jewish, suggests a serious lack of education and respect. In many public schools, such behavior is grounds for immediate dismissal. I suggest two consequences: 1. The entire school Board be required to take a multi-session training on antisemitism and hate speech. 2. Ms. Fisher be given the opportunity to resign and if she does not, terminate her from the school Board.” — Jane L.
💬 “Never acceptable..” — Barbara V.
💬 “Lighten up Francis!!! She OBVIOUSLY meant it for Carver… people are waaaaaay too sensitive these days.” — Jeff M.
💬 “Overreaction by those who are acting dictatorial. I find nothing inappropriate in her reacting to authoritarian excess with a symbolic gesture rather than raising her voice in an unwinnable argument. Our legislature and most local school boards demonstrate that Arizona is still the state that refused to honor MLK Day and was seen by the rest of the country as a little Germany. OMG! There I said it. Heil! Deer Valley Education Association!” — Robert S.
💬 “If Fisher’s retort to Carter is supposedly acting like a tyrant is a Nazi salute, I don’t see it as much of a problem. She could have found a more effective way of getting her point across, though. Carter, Jr. will use this incident to undermine Fisher because people will equate this use of the salute to Elon Musk’s and Hegseth’s use of the salute.” — Gary J.
