AEPi, administration, community leaders respond to swastika graffiti (updated)
Kelly Halom, Co-News editor | Posted: Tuesday, March 17, 2015 12:00 am
The Schulman Center for Jewish Life
Early Saturday morning, two swastikas were spray-painted in the elevator of the Tau Chapter of Alpha Epsilon Pi fraternity house, and another swastika was painted on a basement door, according to an e-mail from Provost and Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs Susan Wente.
Wente e-mailed the student body Monday afternoon to alert students to the incident and inform students that the Vanderbilt University Police Department, with the assistance from the Dean of Students Office, is currently investigating the hate crime.
“We understand the anguish and pain that this hateful symbol causes and we stand together to condemn any effort to intimidate or send an unwelcoming message to the Jewish members of the Vanderbilt community,” Wente said.
Shortly following Wente’s message, Dean of Students Mark Bandas sent an e-mail to students listing available resources for students troubled by the incident, including the staff of the Office of the University Chaplain and Religious Life, the Ben Schulman Center for Jewish Life, and Chabad at Vanderbilt.
Executive Director of Vanderbilt Hillel Ari Dubin wrote in a statement to The Hustler that Hillel is outraged by the anti-Semitic act.
“Vanderbilt Hillel, Chabad, and the rest of the Jewish community on campus stands firmly with AEPi,” Dubin said. “While the swastikas were spray-painted at the AEPi house, this inexcusable incident impacts every Jew on campus, and has no place at Vanderbilt.”
Dubin said that there is nothing ambiguous about the incident.
“Spray painting swastikas at a Jewish fraternity is not a college prank or some mischievous act of vandalism,” said Dubin. “It is a malicious attack intended to bring to mind the horrors of the Holocaust, to force us to feel different, endangered and isolated.”
Dubin said that the Jewish community at Vanderbilt will stand united alongside campus partners and allies “to shine a bright light on this darkness.”
President of the Tau Chapter of AEPi Josh Hyman said in a statement that the organization was horrified by the symbols found in their house, and that they remain grateful for the support and advice from administration, Vanderbilt Hillel, Vanderbilt Chabad, and their International Fraternity.
“As brothers of Alpha Epsilon Pi, we are resolved not to let these actions define us as Vanderbilt students or as Jews. We are going to work harder to build bridges throughout the Vanderbilt campus to fight anti-Semitism and hate of all kinds. We are proud of who we are and will not let a criminal with a can of spray paint make us afraid or build tensions on our campus,” Hyman said.
The three Greek Councils, Panhellenic, IFC and National Pan-Hellenic, issued a joint statement regarding the incident on Wednesday.
“As Vanderbilt Greek men and women, we have diligently worked to make our community more inclusive regarding race, religion, socioeconomic status, sexual orientation, and all other diverse identities that are within our community,” the statement read. “We find the acts committed against AEPi insensitive, appalling, and disgusting. We stand up in solidarity with AEPi, Hillel, Chabad, and the entire Jewish community both here at Vanderbilt and across the country.”
Rabbi Shlomo Rothstein of Vanderbilt Chabad also released a statement to the Vanderbilt Hustler Tuesday morning calling for the expulsion of the perpetrator(s) of the act.
“The swastika represents the cold blooded murder of 6,000,000 Jews, and the abuse, torture and death of countless others. It is unconscionable that in 2015 at a school like Vanderbilt University there was a hate crime so full of prejudice and ignorance,” Rothstein said.
Rothstein said that the event represents an opportunity to create a culture of tolerance through “zero tolerance.”
“Only when there is zero tolerance of prejudice and bigotry against all members of our community, will Vanderbilt achieve a culture of acceptance and respect.,” he said.
Sophomore and Jewish student Gregory Bernstein said that he was shocked and hurt by the news, but he has always felt as though Vanderbilt is a safe place to be Jewish.
“Vanderbilt as a whole is very tolerant, accepting, open to all people, regardless of religion, race, any other factor like that,” Bernstein said. “Though incidents like these are troubling, I don’t think they are representative of campus atmosphere as a whole. I think they are aberrations to the norm.”
Multiple Greek houses and other leaders within the Vanderbilt community have also released statements and spoken out to condemn the act.
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