Editor’s note: This article contains a Jewish slur used in reference to the Holocaust.

The Syracuse Police Department is still investigating multiple hate crimes and bias-related incidents that occurred around the Syracuse University campus.

SPD is currently investigating an anti-Semitic email sent to a Jewish professor, a swastika that was found in a snowbank near campus and a white supremacist manifesto that was allegedly sent to students’ cellphones in Bird Library, SPD spokesperson Sgt. Matthew Malinowski said in an email. Malinowski provided no update on the investigations. 

The FBI is also investigating the anti-Semitic email and the alleged manifesto.

SPD is also investigating a suspicious communication sent to a SU student organization, the Department of Public Safety said in a Nov. 29 campus-wide email. SPD determined that there was no immediate physical threat to the organization or other members of the campus community. 

“In consultation with multiple law enforcement agencies, including  Syracuse Police, the FBI and New York State Police, DPS anticipates we may experience more incidents of this nature,” DPS said in the email. DPS also said the department has consulted with the FBI and the New York State Police.

 At least 16 hate crimes and bias-related incidents occurring on or near SU campus were reported to DPS between Nov. 7 and Nov. 21. The incidents have also included racist graffiti against black, Asian, Jewish and indigenous students found in residence halls and other campus buildings. Some students left campus before the start of Thanksgiving break due to safety concerns and many professors canceled classes. 

A swastika was found etched in a snowbank Nov. 14 on Comstock Avenue across the street from The 505 on Walnut, a luxury apartment complex near campus. An SPD officer arrived at the scene that day and took a photo before clearing the snowbank.

On Nov. 18, a white supremacist manifesto of the Christchurch mosque shooter was allegedly sent to students’ cellphones in Bird Library. Chancellor Kent Syverud said the event was “probably a hoax.” SPD has not yet obtained any device that received the manifesto. 

 Genevieve García de Müeller, a professor of writing, rhetoric and composition, told The Daily Orange on Nov. 19 that she received an email from an anonymous address with the subject line “JEW.” The email told her to “get in the oven where you belong” and included an anti-Semitic slur.  

SPD, New York State Police and the FBI assisted DPS in the investigations. The FBI arrived on campus following the alleged AirDrop of the manifesto early Tuesday morning. 

SPD is not leading a criminal investigation into a racist verbal attack reported Nov. 16 along College Place. A group of people, including members and guests of the Alpha Chi Rho fraternity, yelled the N-word at a black female student.

SU’s Interfraternity Council expelled Alpha Chi Rho following the incident. SU also suspended all campus Greek life social events for the remainder of the semester. The Alpha Chi Rho national chapter denied that any members of the fraternity were involved in the incident. 

Published on December 1, 2019 at 9:16 pm

Contact Richard: rjchang@syr.edu | @RichardJChang1