A myriad of anti-Semitic fliers were posted on Cornell University’s campus on Monday morning.
The fliers featured a slew of anti-Semitic tropes and symbols, as they blared “Just say no to Jewish lies!” around an image of a snake holding the globe in a vice grip and a Star of David. Below the image was a swastika and the line, “Join the white gang.” It also referenced something called the “Solar Cross Society,” which doesn’t seem to exist.
Anti-Semitic posters have been found in Collegetown and at Cornell. #twithaca https://t.co/w9deSqWXQw pic.twitter.com/Cc2KLFVlYD
— The Ithaca Voice (@ithacavoice) October 23, 2017
The fliers have been taken down and it is not known who posted them.
Cornell University President Martha Pollack issued a statement on Monday condemning the posters.
“Whoever is responsible for these fliers is hiding under the cover of anonymity, having posted them overnight,” said Pollack. “Whoever they are, they need to ask themselves why they chose our campus, because Cornell reviles their message of hatred; we revile it as an institution, and I know from many personal conversations that thousands of Cornellians deplore it individually.”
Pollack added that the posters were “abhorrent, and I condemn them in the strongest possible terms.”
“We will not allow this incident to deter us from our ongoing work to address hatred and bigotry on our campus,” said Pollack. “Instead, we will stand strong and stand together to ensure respect, dignity and safety for all our community members.”
Ithaca Mayor Svante Myrick also issued a statement denouncing the fliers.
“Anti-Semitism is a deplorable ideology that has lately received a national platform,” said Myrick. “It is not welcome in Ithaca, as this cowardly poster surely knew when they decided to hang this anonymously.”
Cornell isn’t the only campus this month to be subjected to an anti-Semitic attack. A sukkah at Kansas State University was vandalized on October 5. Such anti-Semitic incidents seem to be on the rise, as the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) found in April that anti-Semitic incidents have increased on college campuses by 86%.
