Recent Racist and Anti-Semitic incidences on Campus

Have the recent daily incidences of racist and Anti-Semitic behavior on campus been influencing your interest in attending Syracuse? The school is second on my child’s list, but the news I have heard is making me somewhat concerned about the Administration’s slow response and student safety. Obviously Syracuse is a great school and most students are not involved in anything untoward. But my daughter has ruled out attending other colleges based on perceived student behavior and attitudes – are recent events making you feel less welcome or likely to attend?

unfortunately this is an issue at many schools, not just Syracuse. Even at schools that you would tend to associate with large Jewish populations like Emory and Columbia. So I am not sure I would avoid a school for this reason, especially one with a stron Hillel like Syracuse. But it might be worth emailing some of the Hillel student board to get their thoughts…

An arrest was made earlier today in connection with the graffetti. An 18 year old freshman girl from New Jersey was arrested.

@Publisher The girl arrested did anti racism, pro protest graffiti, according to what I read.

@sevmom: Thank you. I edited my post until the circumstances are clarified.

Updated news states that the 18 year old freshman was involved with at least 4 incidents involving pro-protest writings just as @sevmom wrote.

News reports are now saying that the alleged airdropping of the white supremacist manifesto was a hoax.

D21 fell in love with Syracuse earlier this month when we toured. Not sure if any of this had started at that point, but we didn’t notice anything while on campus. While disheartening, D still loves the school and it’s her top pick. She’s also not in a group that was targeted.

Its disgusting. And now at UGA too. http://gradynewsource.uga.edu/uga-confirms-reports-of-swastikas-drawn-on-jewish-students-doors/?fbclid=IwAR3Bqvmy8VIfH0yqhV7b2LDNrU0sBZhgFF_xNaWf0TtCkq2Xjfx7yFTDOhY

And a tenured professor at IU is allowed to tweet racist, homophobic and antisemitic garbage under the first amendment free speech. Blech

As matter of fact, the first amendment doesn’t protect their employment. Tenure only means that the professor has a right to due process. A tenured professor may be fired for being incompetent or behaving unprofessionally, if the university is shutting down their program/department, if the university is in financial trouble, etc. At most universities a tenured faculty member can be terminated for violating non-discrimination policies of the university.

However, no university can fire a faculty member because of things which they say as private citizens, outside of work, without mentioning where they work. So if he had signed his screeds or articles that he was a professor at IU on any of his racist rants, he’d be in trouble. if he said anything racist in class, he could be in trouble. Unfortunately, Rasmusen has been fairly meticulous about avoiding doing anything which violates his university’s policies.

Short answer: Yes.

The administration is doing a good job of trying to punish the offenders and correct things. My son had SU on his list. Not near the top, but close enough that it could have been the one. He had planned to apply and I was okay with that. Was.

This is too much smoke from too many sources. As the parent of a minority child, sending him to SU would be like sending my daughters to live next to a drug-infested whorehouse in a bad neighborhood. This isn’t a case of a bad seed acting out – it seems like a bad field that needs to be turned over.

Adjusting to college as a freshman can be tricky enough. The last thing I want to do is make it more difficult by allowing my son to attend what looks to be a den of barely restrained bigotry.

There are too many good schools for me to think about rationalizing away these recent events at SU.

My son loved Syracuse when we toured last summer, and it was instantly high on his list. After reading about recent events on campus (and particularly given the rampant racism that my daughter witnessed at another university that she attended for her freshman year) he decided to do a little more research before making a decision about applying.

Yesterday he reached out to a friend of my older son’s, who is a freshman at Syracuse. That friend also happens to be Jewish.

After their conversation Syracuse has remained high on my son’s list, and he is planning to apply RD for January 1. The friend said that in the 3 months that he has been on campus he has NEVER personally experienced or witnessed any sort of prejudice, and that he finds the student population in general to be diverse and accepting of that diversity. His comment - “the thousands of other students at the University should not be judged by the crappy attitudes and poor decisions of a very, very small minority.” He feels that administration has been responsive to student concerns about recent events and understands the need to thoroughly investigate before rushing to judgment and punishment. Loves Syracuse and can’t wait to go back next week.

This sufficiently addressed my son’s concerns.

My son is a Sophomore at Cuse and my high school junior is highly interested. The original incidents of racist graffiti which has touched off days of protests were in Day Hall, my older son’s freshman dorm. While he is not a member of an impacted demographic I can tell you he was SHOCKED by the incidents and disappointed in the administration’s initial response which touched off so much protest on campus. (And Yes, the air drop was a hoax.) That said, one of the things that drew him to Cuse was its diversity and the incredible warmth you find on campus. He toured many schools of similar quality and while he was drawn to a specific exceptional program at Cuse, ultimately it was the sense there was an inclusive and diverse culture that sealed the deal. If my child were a targeted demographic I am certain I would be incredibly alarmed by what has transpired, but it certainly is not reflective of the community he (and we) have come to know and love. While I’m not thrilled with every step the administration has taken in this process, I agree with the chancellor’s assessment is that Cuse will be better for this, which is another thing for prospective parents and students to consider.

Look at it as if you were buying a used car. You test drive ten cars that are very similar in quality, price, appearance, etc. Two of the cars have a very strange knock in the engine, but otherwise perform well as far as you can tell. The salesman promises you those 2 cars are absolutely fine … and if they do happen to have a little problem he promises their mechanic will fix the problem some time AFTER you purchase the car.

You know that any used car might have a problem, whether it knocks or not. However, do you want to buy a car that has provided signs that it might already have a problem, or would you choose one of the three cars that has not already given such indications? Would you trust the salesman’s verbal promise that any malfunction will be fixed after you pay for the car and take it home, or would you want the malfunctions repaired before you make the purchase?

I’ll respect others who are braver than I, but in this situation with my child’s future at stake, I would choose to err on the side of caution.

For parents who don’t have children would are members of the affected URMs, I respect your (and your child’s) decision that abuse directed at other people is not enough reason to reconsider your decision to attend. This is all very personal, and if you think it does not affect you personally then there is no reason to avoid the school.

Racist incidences, or racist hoaxes on a campus are turnoffs, no doubt about it. It’s too bad, but in most cases the actions are of one, or a very small minority of people, and not representative of the school.

Are there any schools still out there that are suspected of systemic racism? 

My student is at Syracuse and I have been following the incident and protests very closely. Personally I am impressed with how the administration has responded. The president has agreed to all of the “demands” that the protesters insisted on. He has been willing to listen and genuinely seems concerned and hoping to make changes for the better. He has not blamed anyone else or tried to diminish their concerns - both of which I respect. Protests and racist comments can happen anywhere, unfortunately. It is how the people in leadership positions deal with those situations that is important to me.

The university is a microcosm of the rest of the country, for better or worse, and there are a few bad apples but they are not representative of the student body as a whole. (Statistically it’s a relatively diverse community - about 55% white.)

That being said, do reach out to current students to see how they feel. Your student should feel comfortable and safe at any school they attend!

Unfortunately, these incidents are popping up everywhere, and who can say where the next one will occur?

A kid I know chose a college without a history of his ethnicity and its associated nation being targeted, unlike another college he had been considering. In his freshman year, he was right at the center of an incident at his own college, which was supposed to be a calmer environment in respect to that sort of thing.

Unfortunately, intolerance, a hostile mob mentality towards those who are different from the in-group in either background or viewpoint, and expressed hatred of all sorts, are breaking out into the open all over the place now.

I took my daughter to tour Syracuse back in April 2019. I must say of all the schools we toured she felt the strongest connection to Cuse. The Dean of Engineering (her intended major) made her feel completely welcomed. The Dean knew every student that walked the halls of the building we toured. She said hello to them by name. When we drove away that day, it was absolutely her first choice and mine too.

Given that we are Jewish, I must say I liked the idea that there was a decent population of students with our religion. We felt this was well balanced with diversity as well. I was quite surprised to hear what transpired with prejudice over the last few weeks. I naively thought this younger generation didn’t see color, religion or sexual orientation and just judged each other on their character. I certainly raised my children to think that way.

The latest issues at Cuse are definitely concerning. I am grateful we have time until a decision needs to be made as to which school she will attend. The response from Cuse administration over the next several weeks coupled with the students response will definitely factor into her decision.

Good luck to all!

@EconPop: Couldn’t agree more

@TheGreyKing Yes, these problems pop up in many places, but the University’s response (or lack thereof) is what concerns me the most. After reading several articles reporting on this, it is clear the university has had several racial incidents over the past few years and simply swept them under the rug. This is part of a larger pattern. While there is no perfect college, I do expect much better from administrations when these situations occur.

After visiting last spring, my D20 had Syracuse as one of her top 5. But as a URM we cannot simply overlook these issues. After hearing about the incidents, I contacted a colleague who has a daughter enrolled there now. She is a junior, and also a URM. Her advice for other URMs: if you have other options, take them. She said she felt this way even before the recent events. She does not dislike her experience enough to transfer, but she admitted she would go someplace else if she had a chance to do it all over again. According to her, it’s not a hostile environment for URMs, but certainly not welcoming either.

D20 applied ED to another college, so hopefully this won’t be an issue. But I will be VERY concerned if this is one of her only options.

Hi, original poster here. Thanks so much for taking time to thoughtfully weigh in. This incident has greatly diminished my daughter’s interest in attending. She received a letter from the school and did not care for its wording. She is still following through with her app, but decided to add another nearby school to her list. While it is close geographically, it is harder to get into.

Was the letter from the school with the wording that your daughter did not care for related to the #notagainsu protests or graffiti leading up to the incidents?