The recent crisis at the University of Missouri at Columbia over claims of racism brings to light another question: Do Jewish students suffer from anti-Semitism on the campus? The short answer is yes. But a more detailed answer is, it’s complicated.
One of the things that came out during more than a week of protests on MU’s main campus was a report of a swastika drawn in feces discovered in a dormitory bathroom. To many in the Jewish community, this equates to anti-Semitism.
Karen Aroesty, regional director of Anti-Defamation League for Missouri/Southern Illinois, said the ADL is familiar with the incidents of racism on campus and has had discussions with university administrators regarding racial incidents. {mprestriction ids="1,3"}The most recent discovery of a swastika on campus is not the only sighting of the hate symbol in recent years. Aroesty said that raises some concerns.
However Aroesty pointed out that Jews should not jump to the conclusion that the finding of a swastika automatically means anti-Semitism was the intent.
“The nature of the symbol itself has become so broadly known as a symbol of evil. You have so many young people today that have zero understanding of what it really means and its historic connection. Often a swastika shows up in areas where there are no Jews, no Jewish target, where the issue of anti-Semitism, in terms of intent, is far, far away.”
As she continued explaining, the ADL takes all matters of hate crimes — including swastikas — very seriously and wants to make sure that investigations are fully complete before announcing the intent of the hate message.
“In this case, a swastika, as disgusting as it was in a random dorm, without more, who knows what it means,” said Aroesty, who has been with ADL for 16 years.
There are approximately 800 Jewish students on the MU campus at Columbia according to Jeanne Snodgrass, executive director of Hillel, the Jewish Campus Center. That’s a little under 2 percent of the 35,000 student body. On the issue of swastikas on campus, Hillel’s Snodgrass agreed with Aroesty.
“The incidents with the swastikas in the dorms are tricky because the swastika is often used by hate groups in general, it’s not always directed at Jewish students. Some of the students take it very personally just because of the history of the symbol and other students say, ‘Well, I don’t know that it was actually about us,’ ” said Snodgrass, noting that Hillel touches between 400 and 500 Jewish students every academic year and has between 30 to 50 students who are considered very active in the organization.
Snodgrass said students have told her that they have experienced anti-Semitic incidents on campus. In her opinion, most of those incidents students have related to her are more about ignorance than hate. She said many Jewish students find in their freshman year that a lot of students have never met a Jewish person.
“So a lot of comments get made and for most of the students, they understand and try to help educate these people about Jews,” she said.
“It’s a mix. I don’t think it’s pervasive. The students I spoke with last week said they don’t feel it’s strong, but it doesn’t mean that some incidents don’t occur,” continued Snodgrass, who has worked with MU Hillel for almost three years.
The men of AEPi, one of two Jewish fraternities on campus, have indeed experienced anti-Semitism according to Overland Park sophomore Danny Rosenberg.
“A few weeks ago we had an incident where a kid called one of my brothers a ‘kike’ and broke a window in our house,” Rosenberg commented via email, noting he doesn’t experience anti-Semitism on campus on a day-to-day basis.
Rosenberg has also had an awkward experience in a journalism class where a guest speaker — an Islamic cartoonist — expressed strong anti-Zionist views. Following the lecture, Rosenberg expressed concerns to his teacher, but an opportunity to express the pro-Zionist view in that class was never offered.
Francine Gollub, a senior from Overland Park who is president of Sigma Alpha Epsilon Pi, a Jewish sorority, through an email explained she has experienced more indirect types of anti-Semitism.
“Many times it is individuals who do not recognize or condescend Jewish holidays or customs, using stereotypes to define all Jewish people, and using a patronizing tone when talking about Jewish people. It makes me feel very offended to see both direct and indirect anti-Semitism. There has been progress made, but there is still a long way to go to improve equality and awareness for Judaism on campus,” Gollub said.
Rosenberg said anti-Semitic incidents are unsettling, but he still feels safe living in the AEPi house and at MU.
“Unfortunately, part of being Jewish is experiencing some form of anti-Semitism at some point in your life,” he said.
Rosenberg doesn’t believe anti-Semitism is a bigger problem at MU than it is at other similar-sized college campuses.
“That being said, the demographic at MU is different because many of the students come from rural areas, and oftentimes they’ve never met a Jewish person until they get here. And of course I don’t think that’s an excuse for anti-Semitic behavior, but it is important to understand where a lot of these kids are coming from,” he said.
Gollub said that while she is proud to be a student on MU’s campus, she believes the recent anti-Semitic and racist incidents are unacceptable.
“One pillar of Mizzou’s values is respect, which should be upheld by anyone who chooses to be associated with Mizzou. I also think there needs to be more diversity education brought onto campus that can make students aware of inherent bias, and how the student body can coincide together regardless of race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, religion and any other cultural factors,” Gollub said.
Neither student believes the resignation of university officials this week will actually solve the problems of anti-Semitism and racism on campus.
“I honestly believe that the students are the ones who are going to bring change and initiate solutions toward a more inclusive campus, regardless of who is in the administration,” Gollub said.
“The process of advocating for awareness and equality of Jewish students at Mizzou is going to be a long one, and will not happen overnight. As long as Jewish students continue to educate themselves and those around them, the topic will be brought to light through the discussion between peers. I do believe there can be religious equality at Mizzou one day, and students will have to constantly work at it every step of the way to achieve such equality,” she continued.
Rosenberg pointed out racial tension has been mounting on campus over the past year, and the protests and Jonathan Butler’s hunger strike during the past week were important because people started acknowledging the importance of the issues.
“I went to the media conference (Monday), and Jonathan Butler asked people to stop focusing on the hunger strike itself and to focus on how he got to that point where he felt so strongly about the issue (of racism on campus) that it became a matter of life or death for him. He couldn’t be more right,” Rosenberg said.
Hillel’s Snodgrass said there are several things a Jewish student at MU can do if confronted with anti-Semitism.
“They can speak to a member of the administration, who I know take these incidents very seriously,” along with speaking to a member of the Hillel staff who are always available to speak to students, Snodgrass said.
Two rabbis are also located in Columbia, Rabbi Avraham Lapine of MU Chabad and Rabbi Yossi Feintuch of Reform Congregation Beth Shalom. In addition, Hillel hosts a guest rabbi almost every week for a variety of programs and that rabbi is usually available to speak to students. Anti-Semitic incidents can also be reported anonymously online.{/mprestriction}
