What Happened
Sometime on the afternoon of 04/03/23, a mezuzah belonging to an undergraduate Jewish student was removed and broken without authorization from the door frame of their residence. This incident occurred in the days before Passover. This removal of this sacred religious symbol is deemed a form of intimidation and targeting the Jewish community.
Purposely intimidating and threatening people based on protected identities is antithetical to Stanford’s values. More specifically, Stanford considers antisemitic acts to be abhorrent, and this incident is being investigated by the Department of Public Safety as a crime motivated by hate. At this time the offending party(ies) is/are unknown.
What Is Being Done
Updated as of 04/07/23
This incident has been reported to the Department of Public Safety, which is currently investigating. The Jeanne Clery Act and CA Education Code 67380 require the University to record and publish the number of hate incidents occurring on campus.
Because this conduct is being investigated as a crime, it is not considered protected speech, and the person(s) who engaged in the conduct could be subject to legal and disciplinary action.
A Protected Identity Harm report was filed by the resident of the dorm room and by DPS. Student Affairs and University staff reached out to the student to provide support.
A message was sent to the dorm community.
The Office for Religious and Spiritual Life (ORSL) and Hillel staff are aware of the incident and can serve as support systems for students.
What to do:
- If you have any information that may assist with this investigation, please call DPS at 650.329.2413 (24/7) and ask to speak with a deputy. .
- Rabbi Hahn Tapper and other staff from Office of Religious and Spiritual Life (ORSL) as well as Rabbi Kirschner from Hillel are always available to talk individually to students seeking support. All other ORSL Deans can be contacted, as well.
- Students needing assistance are invited to reach out to these mental health resources and faculty/staff can reach out to the Faculty Staff Help Center.
- Self-care equals community care. If you want to learn more about antisemitism and how you can address it, visit the Stanford Against Hate website.
- If you experience bias or discrimination, please file a Protected Identity Harm report.
