On Thursday, Feb. 9 and Sunday, Feb. 12, DU students in Johnson-McFarlane Hall and Nagel Hall experienced acts of vandalism against religious symbols that were on the students’ doorways. DU Hillel, a student group which serves as the central community for Jewish students on campus, confirmed on Monday, Feb. 13, that the incident had occurred and offered support for students affected by the incident.
According to DU Hillel’s statement on Instagram, “three students had mezuzot (a Jewish prayer we put on our doorways) taken down and defiled and one had pork products glued to their door.” They also stated that, “DU administrators, campus safety, faculty, staff, and the Denver police are involved appropriately” as a reaction to the acts of antisemitism.
Later that day, DU Hillel posted on Instagram again about an event they planned for that evening, offering a safe space for students at the Hillel House starting at 6:30 p.m. They had “pizza and tissues” available for students, as well as community support.
On the night of Feb. 13, a statement by Vice Chancellor of Student Affairs and Inclusive Excellence Todd Adams via email further addressed the events, stating that “these acts are NOT acceptable within DU’s community, and [we] acknowledge the harm that has been caused to members of our community.” The email included links to DU’s Hillel and Chabad groups, support available at the Health and Counseling Center (HCC), ways to contact the Student Outreach and Support (SOS) network and additional resources.
The following day, Provost Mary Clark, Vice Chancellor for Human Resources and Inclusive Community Jeff Banks and Vice Chancellor for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, Chris Whitt, released a message reiterating Adams’ previous statement, adding, “We stand together in deploring these acts and in committing ourselves to promoting a warm, welcoming campus in which all community members can thrive.”
This sparked outrage among the student body, who felt that DU’s response to the situation was lackluster and insulting. Many took to Instagram, reposting DU Hillel’s message and calling for more action from DU’s administration.
On Wednesday, Feb. 15, DU Hillel announced a Jewnity Shabbat Hop event co-hosted by Hillel, Chabad, and DU, demonstrating cooperation between DU and the university’s Jewish community to support and rectify the situation. Held on Friday, Feb. 17, the event included songs, speeches and candle lighting in the Community Commons Grand Forum, followed by dinner at Hillel and dessert with discussion at Chabad. They emphasized that all were welcome, and that the event was to “honor our Jewish pride (and ally pride)!!”
Prior to attending the event, DU Chancellor Jeremy Haefner addressed the situation in its entirety.
“Anti-Semitism is wrong, dehumanizing, and against so many values DU stands for. It has no place in this community or any other,” Haefner said. The Chancellor revealed that the Campus Safety Department determined that all three acts will be counted as hate crimes in the Clery Act statistics, and that DU’s Office of Equal Opportunity and Title IX (EOIX) is investigating the events and attempting to figure out who performed the hate crimes. The University is also working on new educational programming focused on anti-Semitism.
Just as in the previous emails, links were provided to many campus resources and Haefner also invited the community to the Jewnity Shabbat Hop event. He concluded by saying, “Let us cling firmly not only to our ideals but also to the knowledge that this moment does not reflect who we are or who we want to be.”
Following the event, former acting-President and current Treasurer of DU Hillel, Nina Morgenstein, said, “It is not a common occurrence that the Chancellor, Provost, and multiple Deans attend Shabbat, as they did last Friday. So, it was concerning to me when those who weren’t impacted by the antisemitism exploited it as a reason to bash DU, when in reality our university’s administration, faculty, and other DU organizations have been handling these anti-Semitic incidents with great care and attention.”
The Jewnity Shabbat Hop event enjoyed overwhelming attendance, enlivened by tremendous spirit and togetherness. According to DU Chabad’s Instagram, 108 people came to the pre-Shabbat celebration of songs, speeches, and candle lighting. As well, 70 attended the following dinner and dessert. It is still unclear as to who committed these hate crimes, why and what further action will be taken in the coming weeks.
