University of Connecticut students hold rally against recent acts of antisemitism

Students from the University of Connecticut held a rally on Monday 5th April after their campus was vandalised with swastikas and Nazi ‘SS’ symbols. In addition to this, a visibly Jewish student carrying a kippah and a box of matzah was the victim of an antisemitic verbal assault during the Jewish festival of Passover.

The incident is currently under police investigation, making this the seventh antisemitic incident to take place during the current academic year, according to the University’s Hillel Jewish campus group.

In an Instagram post, Hillel stated that the Nazi symbols were “graffitied on the side of the Chemistry Building directly facing the UConn Hillel building.”   

Hillel also confirmed that a student from the University drove past a Jewish student carrying a kippah and a box of matzah. The perpetrator allegedly rolled down their window and spewed antisemitic hate speech before driving off.

The University’s President, Thomas Katsouleas, said: “It is distressing to me that a letter like this one is necessary, but it is absolutely urgent for us to make clear to all of our students, faculty, and staff members that you are vital, valued members of the UConn community. For those who feel distressed or uncertain in the face of incidents of abhorrent conduct, let us be as clear as we can: Hate has no place here.”

Antisemitic graffiti was also discovered recently at Albion College in Michigan.

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