Egregious anti-Semitic slogans were broadcast on University of Pennsylvania buildings in the latest disturbing incident at the Ivy League institution, as the school faces a civil rights complaint accusing it of being “a magnet for anti-Semites.”
Several social media accounts on Thursday shared images of a “light show” in which anti-Israel and pro-Palestinian messages were projected on the walls of campus buildings.
“From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free,” read an illuminated message against the John M Huntsman room.
“Zionism is racism,” declared another.
“Penn funds Palestinian genocide,” said a third.
The hateful slogans are just the latest brazen act of anti-Semitism at the prestigious university.
University of Pennsylvania President Liz Magill recently acknowledged an increase in anti-Semitic acts on campus, including “swastikas and hate graffiti,” as well as “rally chants, captured on video and widely circulated, that glorify Hamas terrorist atrocities, which celebrate and praise the killing and kidnapping of innocent people, and that calls into question Israel’s very right to exist.”
Anti-Semitic slogans were projected on buildings at the University of Pennsylvania. Shutterstock
Anti-Jewish culture has become so pervasive that the Brandeis Center said it was filing a complaint against UPenn – as well as Wellesley College – with the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights.
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 president of the Brandeis Center and former US deputy secretary of education, colleges and universities “have failed to keep Jewish students safe and are in clear violation of well-established federal civil rights law.” .
University of Pennsylvania President Liz Magill recently acknowledged an increase in anti-Semitic acts on campus. Liz Magill/Facebook
“There has been a lot of talk about eradicating anti-Semitism on campuses, and it is time to hold these universities accountable,” he added.
The complaints “seek immediate and specific actions to address increasing discrimination and harassment of Jews in violation of Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964,” reads a statement from the human rights nonprofit.
Earlier this month, two dozen members of Congress sent him a letter condemning the university’s alleged failure to quickly and unequivocally condemn the Oct. 7 Hamas attack.
UPenn student caught on video tearing down posters of kidnapped Israelis.X / @StopAntisemites
On Monday, several UPenn employees received anti-Semitic emails threatening violence against members of the university’s Jewish community.
The emails allegedly “threaten violence” against Jewish members of the school, especially 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 included hate language, directed at the recipients’ personal identities,” Magill said.
“Threats of violence are not tolerated at Penn and will be met with swift and decisive action,” he added.
“The perniciousness of anti-Semitic acts on our campus is causing deep pain and fear for our Jewish students, faculty and staff and is shaking their sense of security and belonging at Penn. This is intolerable. “I personally condemn these vicious and hateful anti-Semitic acts and words.”
University public safety officials did not find any credible threats, but increased security around campus.
The university notified the FBI about the possible hate crime and is investigating the threats.
Authorities are working “urgently” with the FBI to “identify the individual or individuals responsible for these hateful and threatening emails and to ensure that they are apprehended and punished to the fullest extent of the law,” Magill said.
A UPenn student is seen speaking fondly about the “joyful” images of massacred Israelis from “glorious October 7.”
He felt “happy” to hear the news of the dead Jews in Israel.
In what appears to be a call for violence, he tells the crowd to “keep that feeling in… pic.twitter.com/pdygANFmtY
– Ritchie Torres (@RitchieTorres) November 6, 2023
Meanwhile, a student believed to be from UPenn was filmed saying she felt “very empowered and happy” about the October 7 terrorist attack by Hamas against Israel, which killed more than 1,400 people.
The clip, circulating online and shared by U.S. Rep. Ritchie Torres (D-N.Y.) of the Bronx, shows the woman’s back as she speaks at a pro-Palestinian rally and says, “I remember feeling so empowered and happy, so confident that victory was close and so tangible.
“I want all of you to keep that feeling in your hearts. Never let go. Channel it through every action you take.”
The UPenn student posted in a clip shared by Rep. Ritchie Torres.
In the wake of the monstrous Hamas attack, UPenn leaders were criticized for taking too long to condemn the massacre.
The Ivy League campus was also heavily criticized even before the October 7 terrorist attack for holding a Palestine Writes literature festival, which included several speakers and guests previously accused of making anti-Semitic statements.
Penn President Liz Magill commented on the vandalism.
“Last night, vile and anti-Semitic messages were projected on several campus buildings, including Penn Commons, Huntsman Hall, and Irvine Auditorium. Penn Police were notified and responded quickly, and a full investigation is currently underway. We will follow this matter to the fullest and take prompt action in accordance with our policies.
For generations, many have masked anti-Semitism with hostile rhetoric. These reprehensible messages are an assault on our values and cause pain and fear to our Jewish community. Penn has a long and rich history of robust debate on complicated issues of the day. Projecting messages of hate on our campus is not debate, it is cowardice, and it has no place at Penn.”
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