Jewish students studying at the prestigious University of Pennsylvania live in fear of alleged vile threats to “destroy” them, a student has claimed.
Claudia Tawil, 19, told The Post that the atmosphere on campus is “very scary” — because the Ivy League institution is facing civil rights complaints accusing it of being a “magnet for antisemites.”
Tawil claimed Jewish students were constantly harassed on campus and subjected to chants of support for Hamas violence, including: “There is only one solution: the resolution of the intifada.”
The chemistry student explained that the phrase deliberately echoes Hitler’s “final solution” and calls for deadly violence against Jews in Israel.
“It basically means they want to wipe us out,” he said.
“There was also a rally where I was in class and I heard outside ‘Free Palestine, Hamas Hamas Hamas’.
“I was in class and I couldn’t focus. A terrorist organization that rapes women, decapitates babies, and burns them in ovens is not something anyone should support.”
“Israelis do not support oppression and we are not pro-death on any side.”
Tawil said the university was covered in antisemitic graffiti.Claudia Tawil
Tawil said hateful anti-Jewish messages were scrawled on doors and walls throughout the school, including one that read: “Jews R Nazis.”
Another scrawled in chalk on the campus sidewalk reads: “Israel is an apartheid state.”
According to the Brandeis Center, a non-profit civil rights organization, students have also reported that “many Penn professors have also made anti-Semitic, pro-Hamas statements in the classroom and on social media”.
“Penn students reported feeling stressed and fearing for their safety as the rally continued and as their professors continued to show their support for Hamas,” a statement from the organization read.
Earlier this week, vile antisemitic slogans were flashed onto buildings at UPenn.
A light show on campus flashes a message of hate at a building that supports Palestine. Free Penn Police
Several social media accounts 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,” read a message lit up in the John M Huntsman hall.
“Zionism is racism,” others declared.
“Penn is funding the Palestinian genocide,” said a third.
UPenn President Liz Magill addressed the troubling vandalism Thursday and confirmed an investigation is underway.
Antisemitic slogans are flashed onto buildings at the University of Pennsylvania.Shutterstock
“Last night, vile and antisemitic messages were projected onto several campus buildings, including in Penn Commons, Huntsman Hall, and Irvine Auditorium. Penn Police were notified and responded quickly, and a full investigation is underway. We will pursue this matter fully and take swift action in accordance with our policy,” he said in a statement.
“For generations, too many have masked antisemitism in hostile rhetoric. These reprehensible messages are an attack on our values and cause pain and fear for our Jewish community. Penn has a long and rich history of debate about the complex issues of the day. Projecting a message of hate on our campus is not debate, it is cowardice, and it has no place at Penn.”
The hateful slogans are just the latest brazen act of antisemitism at the venerable university.
Magill recently acknowledged an increase in antisemitic acts on campus including “swastikas and hateful graffiti” as well as “singing at rallies, recorded on video and widely disseminated, which glorifies the brutality of Hamas terrorists, which celebrates and praises the slaughter and kidnapping of innocents . the people, and that calls into question Israel’s right to exist.”
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 at the US Department of Education.
UPenn President Liz Magill recently acknowledged an increase in antisemitic acts on campus.Liz Magill/Facebook
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 assistant secretary of education, US 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 antisemitism on campus, and it’s time to hold this college accountable,” he added.
The complaint “obtained 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 failure to immediately and firmly condemn the October 7 Hamas attack.
A UPenn student was caught on video tearing down a poster of kidnapped Israelis.X / @StopAntisemites
On Monday, several UPenn staff members received a targeted antisemitic email that threatened violence against members of the university’s Jewish community.
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.
College public safety officials have not found a credible threat but have increased security around campus.
The university notified the FBI of a potential hate crime and is investigating the threat.
A student believed to be from UPenn was recorded saying he felt “very empowered and happy” by the October 7 terrorist attack by Hamas.
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.
The clip, which was circulated online and shared by Rep. Ritchie Torres (D-NY) of the US Bronx, showing the back of the woman as he spoke at a pro-Palestinian rally, said: “I remember feeling so powerful and happy, so convinced that victory was so close and so tangible.”
“I want you all to keep that feeling in your hearts. Never let go. Channel it through every action you take.”
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/
