University of Denver Police Department investigates recent anti-Jewish acts of hate
By RICK SALLINGER
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DENVER (KCNC) — The University of Denver sent a letter to all students and staff this week informing them about three antisemitic incidents within the past week stating”these facts are not acceptable.” They happened in two student residence halls. The University of Denver Police Department is investigating.
Religious items called mezuzahs were removed from Jewish students’ doors. One seen in a photo was defaced and on the ground.
Two dorm rooms were hit at Nagle Hall. At Johnson-McFarlane Hall, pork, which is against Jewish kosher dietary laws, was left on a student’s door.
Students CBS News Colorado spoke with condemned the acts.
A female student outside of Johnson-MacFarlane residence hall said, “I feel it’s horrible. I honestly don’t know why someone would be compelled to do that.”
“We stand together in deploring these acts and in committing ourselves to promoting a warm, welcoming campus in which all community members can thrive,” DU Provost Mary Clark wrote in the letter.
Leaders at the Denver University Hillel say it’s important for people who aren’t Jewish to stand up for their Jewish friends and not to be a bystander if they spot any antisemitic behavior.
“I know there’s been calls for additional security measures. We’ve reviewed some of those and we’re discussing it with the university. I think more will be revealed,” said Daniel Bennett, executive director of Hillel of Colorado, in a news conference on Tuesday afternoon. “I hope so.”
The Colorado Hillel Center serves Jewish students and revealed there have been other antisemitic incidents in the past.
“We have had posters put up. We have had banners across Evans. We have had graffiti. We have had students accosted.”
Other people CBS News Colorado approached were appalled. One woman said that “it’s very disheartening that we are here in 2023 and things like this are still happening anywhere, especially on our college campus which is supposed to be inclusive.”
Lily Gross, director of Jewish Student Life for Hillel Colorado noted the response.
“We are already seeing students standing proud to be Jewish. They want to put up these mezuzahs that were taken down that we are proud of,” Gross said.
It is estimated about 10% of the undergraduates at the University of Denver are Jewish. For them, these incidents may have left dust on the DU welcome mat.
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