Closed
After a period of 90 days with no new information, cases are considered closed. However, if new information becomes available or there are other updates those will be posted here. Individuals who believe they have been the target of bias, intolerance or discrimination may report an incident to the public incident report form (bias and intolerance) or the Office of Equal Opportunity and Affirmative Action (sexual misconduct and discrimination).
Please direct any questions or concerns in regard to this bias incident to the RBIRT Manager at RBIresponse@utah.edu.
What happened
On September 9, 2022, a Resident Advisor (RA) in a University Housing residence hall observed a swastika drawn on a whiteboard on a residence door. The residents in the room where the symbol was drawn all identify as White and non-Jewish individuals; however the RA who discovered the symbol is Jewish. This incident reminds us that anti-Jewish hate/antisemitic incidents are increasingly being reported on college campuses and that the University of Utah is not immune against such hate.
What is being done
The incident was reported to the Office of Equal Opportunity and Affirmative Action (OEO/AA), the Racist and Bias Incident Response Team, and to University of Utah Police, which has opened an investigation. The symbol was removed from the whiteboard, and Housing and Residential Education (HRE) staff conducted a check to ensure there were no other hate symbols drawn on other rooms in the community.
If you have any information related to this incident (or others) that may help, please report by filling out the form at the Office of the Dean of Students website. Or you can report to University of Utah Police by calling 801-585-2677 or filling out the Silent Witness form.
If, through the course of some review or investigation (by University Police, or other appropriate investigative body), the individual(s) responsible is identified, the Office of the Dean of Students (if confirmed to be a student), Human Resources (if confirmed to be an employee), or other appropriate leader, will act within university policy designed to hold the individual(s) accountable and, if appropriate, provide additional education about the harm caused to the community by this type of behavior.
What to do
Be vigilant and speak up. If you see someone drawing hate symbols in residence halls, University buildings or other public places, note the location and notify a campus official. If you are interested in learning more about the variety of resources the U offers to support diversity and inclusion, please visit the Office of the Dean of Students in the Union Building, Room 270, deanofstudents@utah.edu, 801-581-7066, or Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion in the Park Building, Room 208, or https://diversity.utah.edu/our-team/. To make a report of a racist or bias incident, visit the public reporting form.
Stopping this type of behavior takes collective action, and bystander intervention efforts are one way of combatting conduct that can wrongfully be seen as a prank or joke but can cause real harm. To learn more about how to incorporate bystander intervention into your toolkit, check out the information here: https://wellness.utah.edu/workshops-training/#bystander
The U is committed to equity, diversity and inclusion
The University strongly disagrees with the messages these symbols convey that cause harm and diminish a sense of belonging and safety for not only our Jewish community but for our communities of color, and the LGBTQ+ community as well. We are striving to create a campus community where members find a place of safety and belonging, and have the space to explore, express, and celebrate their various identities.
When done covertly, we cannot stop the act in the moment. We will continue to name the biased acts, investigate, and when such acts violate the law or our policies, we will hold the perpetrators of these hateful acts accountable when they are identified. Additionally, we will continue efforts that uplift and celebrate our communities and enhance a sense of belonging on our campus, and strive to live our mission and lead with purpose.
The University of Utah also welcomes and values the members of our community who identify as Jewish, and believes the community is strengthened by their contributions. The University is currently partnering with Hillel International on a comprehensive Campus Climate Initiative focused on understanding the experiences and needs of our Jewish student population and educating the campus community. Information about other types of critical conversations is available online.
Support and resources
If you have experienced or are impacted by biased or hateful behavior on our campus, we want to know so that we can address those acts quickly and provide support. Incidents can be reported to the Racist and Bias Incident Response Team here. Counseling and support services are available from several entities on campus: https://safeu.utah.edu/resources/.
If you experience harassment or discrimination, visit the Office of Equal Opportunity, and please report. For education to gain an understanding of the diverse Jewish community, what antisemitism is and how it affects the community, and how to be an advocate the Antidefamation League (ADL) and the Combat Antisemitism Movement are great places to start.