A traditional Jewish fraternity was defaced at Vanderbilt early the morning of March 18.
A swastika was found painted on the inside of the elevator doors at the Alpha Epsilon Pi chapter house after hosting a party Saturday night. Campus police are investigating the vandalism as a hate crime.
Ari Dubin, executive director of Vanderbilt Hillel, said on Facebook “There is no ambiguity about what happened here. Spray painting swastikas at a Jewish fraternity is not a college prank or some mischievous act of vandalism. It is a malicious attack intended to bring to mind the horrors of the Holocaust, to force us to feel different, endangered, and isolated.”
Vanderbilt’s chapter is the third chapter to be vandalized in the last six months. The other attacks happened at Emory University and University of California, Davis. The national fraternity does not believe these to be isolated incidents and believes it is the reflection of the “rising tide of anti-Semitism” that is spreading throughout the world.
Alpha Epsilon Pi wanted to make known that they proudly stand with Israel and will work to allow their members to support Israel, as well as their Jewish Heritage.
Vanderbilt officials say that it doesn’t matter who is responsible for this or what their motivation was, the university condemns the reprehensible depiction of this symbol that since the time of Nazi Germany has come to be associated with hate, anti-Semitism, violence, death and murder.
Vanderbilt’s Provost and Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs Susan Wente told NBC, “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.”
