A vile antisemitic slogan has been flashed onto a building at the University of Pennsylvania in the latest troubling incident at the Ivy League institution — as the school now faces a civil rights complaint accusing it of being a “magnet for antisemites.”
Several social media accounts on Thursday shared photos of a “light show” that saw anti-Israel and pro-Palestinian messages projected onto the walls of campus buildings.
“From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free,” a message lit up in the John M Huntsman hall read.
“Zionism is racism,” others declared.
“Penn is funding the Palestinian genocide,” said a third.
The hateful slogans are just the latest brazen act of antisemitism at the prestigious university.
UPenn President Liz Magill recently acknowledged an increase in antisemitic acts on campus including “hateful swastikas and graffiti” as well as “singing at rallies, recorded on video and widely distributed, that glorify the brutality of Hamas terrorists, that celebrate and praise the slaughter and kidnapping of people which is innocent, and that calls into question Israel’s right to exist.”
Antisemitic slogans are flashed onto buildings at the University of Pennsylvania.Shutterstock
Anti-Jewish culture has become so pervasive that the Brandeis Center said it filed a complaint against UPenn — as well as Wellesley College — with the Office of Civil Rights (OCR) at the US Department of Education.
The complaint alleges that “Penn has allowed its campus to become a hostile environment for its Jewish students as well as a magnet for anti-Semites.”
According to Kenneth L. Marcus, founder and chairman of the Brandeis Center and former US Assistant Secretary of Education, colleges and universities have “failed to keep Jewish students safe and are in clear violation of well-established federal civil rights laws”.
“There’s been a lot of talk about eliminating anti-Semitism on campus, and it’s time to hold this college accountable,” he added.
The complaint “obtains immediate and specific action to address increased discrimination and harassment against Jews in violation of Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964,” a statement from the human rights nonprofit read.
Earlier this month, two dozen members of Congress sent him a letter condemning the university’s alleged lack of immediate and firm condemnation of the Hamas attack.
UPenn President Liz Magill recently acknowledged an increase in antisemitic acts on campus.Liz Magill/Facebook
On Monday, several UPenn staff members received targeted, anti-Semitic emails threatening violence against members of the university’s Jewish community, including Penn Hillel and Lauder College House.
The email allegedly “threatened violence” against Jewish members of the school, particularly those who work at Penn Hillel — a Jewish organization on campus — and Lauder College House, UPenn’s President revealed in a statement Monday.
“These messages also include hateful language, targeting the recipient’s personal identity,” Magill said.
“Threats of violence are not tolerated at Penn and will be met with swift and decisive action,” he added.
A UPenn student was caught on video tearing down a poster of kidnapped Israelis.X / @StopAntisemites
“The ugliness of anti-Semitic acts on our campus causes deep pain and fear among our Jewish students, faculty, and staff and undermines their sense of safety and belonging at Penn. This is unacceptable. I personally condemn these cruel and hateful anti-Semitic acts and words.”
College public safety officials have found no credible threat and have increased security around campus.
The university notified the FBI of a potential hate crime and is investigating the threat.
Authorities are working “immediately” with the FBI to “identify the individual or individuals responsible for these hateful and threatening emails and to ensure they are caught and punished to the fullest extent of the law,” Magill said.
Meanwhile, a student believed to be from UPenn was recorded saying he felt “very empowered and happy” by the October 7 terrorist attack by Hamas on Israel, which killed more than 1,400 people.
A student from UPenn was seen talking fondly of the “joyous” image of slaughtered Israelis from “glorious October 7.”
He was “happy” when he heard the news of Jews dying in Israel.
In what appeared to be a call to violence, he told the crowd to “hold that feeling in … pic.twitter.com/pdygANFmtY
— Ritchie Torres (@RitchieTorres) November 6, 2023
The clip, which was circulated online and shared by Rep. Bronx Ritchie Torres, showing the back of the woman as she spoke at a pro-Palestinian rally, said: “I remember feeling so powerful and happy, so sure that victory was so close and so tangible. .
“I want you all to keep that feeling in your hearts. Never let it go. Channel it through every action you take.”
The UPenn student posted in a clip shared by Rep. Ritchie Torres.
After the devastating Hamas attack, UPenn’s leadership was criticized for taking too long to deny the slaughter.
The Ivy League campus was also heavily criticized even before the October 7 terrorist attacks for hosting the Palestine Writes literary festival, which included several speakers and guests who had previously been accused of making antisemitic remarks.
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Source: thtrangdai.edu.vn/en/
