UVA launches investigation into defacement of Israeli flag
UVA administrators condemned the incident, calling it “antithetical to the values” of the school.
The University of Virginia (UVA) recently launched an investigation into the vandalism of an Israeli flag inside a classroom building that was covered with the question “Where is Palestine.”
Nicole Thorne Jenkins, dean of UVA’s McIntire School of Commerce, said the incident was reported on Sept. 6, stressing that although the university supported faculty and students’ right to criticize the flag display, the anti-Semitic nature of the incident concerned school administrators, according to The Daily Progress.
“This is a direct violation of our community of trust and mutual respect, as well as an illegal act of vandalism that will not be tolerated by the McIntire School or the University,” Jenkins said in a statement. “Questions about the showcase of flags are welcome; however, this was an act of vandalism. Vandalism is not protected speech: it is criminal conduct.
“Moreover, this act of vandalism targeted and defaced the flag of the world’s only Jewish state. I have spoken with the Provost and we agree that on its face, this appears to be an act of antisemitism and will likely be experienced by many in our community as such.”
UVA president Jim Ryan and Provost Ian Baucom condemned the incident in a public statement, reiterating the school’s commitment to open dialogue and free expression.
“This act of antisemitism is antithetical to the values and norms of the McIntire School and the University as a whole,” Ryan and Baucom said. “As we all begin another year together on Grounds, we want to make it as clear as possible that while we are committed to free expression, vandalism is not protected speech. Like bigotry and harassment of any kind, it has no place at the University.”
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As previously reported by Campus Reform, UVA faced a slew of criticism surrounding its handling of anti-Israel protests during the preceding academic year. In May, then-freshman Matan Goldstein filed a lawsuit against the university, alleging that it had acted negligently by failing to protect Jewish students from anti-Semitism, including physical assault.
“I’m a religious Jew, I believe in God,” Goldstein said. “Why am I supposed to hide? Are we living in the 1930s? Am I supposed to be in a Jewish ghetto on the outskirts, isolated from everyone else? Why are we moving backwards?”
Campus Reform has reached out to UVA, Jim Ryan, Ian Baucom, and Nicole Thorne Jenkins for comment. This story will be updated accordingly.