University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (f11photo/Deposit Photos) The University of Pennsylvania’s (UPenn) Hillel was vandalized on Thursday morning by a perpetrator who allegedly shouted antisemitic remarks while doing so.
The Hillel posted a statement to Instagram saying that just before the Hillel opened at 7 a.m., a member of the Penn Hillel community opened the door to enter morning services. At this point, an unknown individual ran inside the building and “knocked over several pieces of furniture while shouting antisemitic obscenities about Jewish people.” According to The Daily Pennsylvanian (DP), the perpetrator allegedly shouted, “Jesus is king,” “F— the Jews” and “they killed JC.” The DP also reported that, according to a Jewish student, the vandalism resulted in “a flipped table, scattered papers, and a damaged podium” as well as “flipped-over trash cans.”
The Hillel statement added that their staff chased the perpetrator out of the building and that the perpetrator was subsequently arrested by campus police. Per the statement, the campus police noted that the perpetrator “had been knocking over trash cans” on a nearby street and was “acting erratically” beforehand. “No students were present nor witnessed any of the episode, and no one was hurt during the incident,” the statement said. Penn Hillel also argued that the perpetrator “did not accidentally choose to enter our building. He did not accidentally choose to shout antisemitic slogans. He chose our building. He chose to do so just three days before Yom Kippur. He chose to do so one day before a number of speakers are coming to campus who have histories of making antisemitic and hate-filled statements against Jews. This was not a coincidence.” This an apparent reference to the upcoming Palestine Writes Literature Festival being held on UPenn’s campus this weekend, though the DP noted in an update to their story that there isn’t any evidence connecting the vandalism to the festival; the festival has condemned the Hillel vandalism.
The Penn Hillel statement concluded by saying: “We are saddened by these events, but are utterly undeterred in our mission –– to support every single student on campus during their Penn journey, Jewishly, and in so many other ways –– today, tomorrow, and for years to come.” They referred all further inquiries to the campus Division of Public Safety.
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The Penn Division of Public Safety said in a statement to the Journal on Thursday, “Early this morning, Penn Public Safety was notified of an individual overturning trash cans and acting erratically on Walnut Street. Penn Police intercepted the individual at Steinhardt Hall (Hillel), where the individual was making offensive statements and overturning furniture. Penn Police determined the individual was experiencing a crisis and safely removed the individual and transported the individual for further evaluation. Penn Public Safety also initiated and is following all protocols for potential bias incidents on campus, and is continuing to provide additional support to the Hillel community following this incident.”
Penn student Maya Harpaz, who serves as an executive board member and vice president of Israel engagement for Penn Hillel, told the DP that the vandalism was “extremely heartbreaking and painful given everything that’s happening right now on campus.”
Jewish groups denounced the vandalism.
“We are still collecting information, but ADL is deeply disturbed by the antisemitic incident at @PennHillel this morning,” the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) posted on X, formerly known as Twitter. “Thankfully no one was hurt, but perpetrators need to be held accountable. Security measures need to be reviewed and adjusted.” They urged the university leadership “to issue an unequivocal condemnation of the antisemitism associated with the festival this weekend and to completely dissociate the university from it.”
We call on @Penn's president and leadership to issue an unequivocal condemnation of the antisemitism associated with the festival this weekend and to completely dissociate the university from it.
— ADL (@ADL) September 21, 2023
The American Jewish Committee (AJC) similarly posted on X, “AJC is deeply concerned about an antisemitic attack at Penn Hillel this morning ahead of a campus event featuring antisemitic speakers. We stand in solidarity with Jewish students and continue to work with them to fight hate and ensure thriving and secure Jewish life on campus.” According to Jewish Insider, AJC CEO Ted Deutch will be attending Penn Hillel’s “Shabbat Together” event on Friday that’s being held in response to the festival.
AJC is deeply concerned about an antisemitic attack at Penn Hillel this morning ahead of a campus event featuring antisemitic speakers.
We stand in solidarity with Jewish students and continue to work with them to fight hate and ensure thriving and secure Jewish life on campus.… pic.twitter.com/RhLwTxdcfA
— American Jewish Committee (@AJCGlobal) September 21, 2023
Stop Antisemitism posted on X that the vandalism is “even MORE reason to move this weekend’s hate fest OFF of your campus before someone gets hurt @Penn!”
Antisemitic vandalism, verbal assault at Penn this morning as someone ran into the University's Hillel yelling "F the Jews, the Jews killed Jesus".
Even MORE reason to move this weekend's hate fest OFF of your campus before someone gets hurt @Penn! https://t.co/baHvUL8NW2 pic.twitter.com/Uod0Zk60so
— StopAntisemitism (@StopAntisemites) September 21, 2023
International Legal Forum CEO Arsen Ostrovsky posted on X, “This is what happens when antisemitic hate on campus, like this obscene ‘Palestine Writes’ festival of hate, goes unchecked by @Penn leadership!”
This is what happens when antisemitic hate on campus, like this obscene ‘Palestine Writes’ festival of hate, goes unchecked by @Penn leadership! https://t.co/12HFdwmfEW
— Arsen Ostrovsky (@Ostrov_A) September 21, 2023
The Palestine Writes Literature Festival is being held from September 22-24 on UPenn’s campus; the university has previously issued a statement acknowledging the “deep concerns about several speakers who have a documented and troubling history of engaging in antisemitism by speaking and acting in ways that denigrate Jewish people” and stating that the university condemns “antisemitism as antithetical to our institutional values. As a university, we also fiercely support the free exchange of ideas as central to our educational mission. This includes the expression of views that are controversial and even those that are incompatible with our institutional values.” Susan Abulhawa, the executive director of the festival, told the Journal on September 15 that none of the festival’s speakers are antisemitic and that “the weaponization of antisemitism to silence or marginalize us has been an effective tool by those who have taken everything from us, shattered our families and country, killed and maimed and traumatized and terrorized us, and carved out our hearts. It is galling that they harass us even here as we try to have a moment of togetherness and agency, putting forth a mind blowing narrative that we are victimizing our colonizers.”
The Palestine Writes festival posted a statement to social media on Thursday condemning the Hillel vandalism as “a cowardly and heinous act” and called for “a thorough investigation” into the matter. They proceeded to criticize the DP’s coverage for connecting “this attack to an intersectional and inclusive literary festival” and demanded that the student paper “clarify their misleading story and its racist defamatory claims” and “to honor the ethics of journalism, rather than irresponsibly and falsely linking the attack to a festival organized by fellow Penn students.” Representatives from the DP did not respond to the Journal’s request for comment.
The attack on the Hillel center is a cowardly and heinous act. We condemn it and request a thorough investigation. The @dailypenn has repeatedly misrepresented Palestine Writes and misquoted its organizers. We find it extremely irresponsible and incendiary that… pic.twitter.com/y8sy9GSgrU
— Palestine Writes (@PalestineWrites) September 21, 2023
…the @dailypenn has linked this attack to an intersectional and inclusive literary festival. We ask the DP to clarify their misleading story and its racist defamatory claims…
— Palestine Writes (@PalestineWrites) September 21, 2023
We call upon its staff @dailypenn to honor the ethics of journalism, rather than irresponsibly and falsely linking the attack to a festival organized by fellow Penn students.
— Palestine Writes (@PalestineWrites) September 21, 2023
UPDATE: University President Elizabeth Magill and other university leaders addressed the Hillel vandalism in a statement on Friday.
“Penn Police responded yesterday to reports of an individual shouting antisemitic obscenities and overturning furniture at Penn Hillel,” the statement read. “The individual was determined to be in crisis and was quickly and safely removed and referred for medical evaluation. This troubling incident came in the wake of another upsetting occurrence at the Weitzman School of Design, where a group of students found a swastika painted on the wall of a spray booth, a small room that is used for painting projects, on the fourth floor of Meyerson Hall.” The statement continued: “We unequivocally condemn such hateful acts. They are an assault on our values and mission as an institution and have no place at Penn. Sadly, incidents of hatred, including antisemitic rhetoric and acts that denigrate Jewish people, have become all too common. That these incidents happened on our campus, in our spaces, is deeply unsettling.”
“We also acknowledge the timing of these incidents is particularly difficult given the controversial speakers who will be participating in the event on our campus over the coming days,” Magill and the other university leaders added. “It is our collective responsibility as a community to stand clearly and strongly against antisemitism.”
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