Anti-Semitic incidents are being investigated at the University of Oregon

The University of Oregon says it is investigating several recent incidents of anti-Semitism in its dormitories, including reports of a swastika painted next to a photo of a Jewish student and what one family described as a “Hitler” mustache painted on a student’s face.

University police and the school’s Office of Investigations and Civil Rights Enforcement are also investigating reports of items taken from rooms belonging to Jewish students, including tapes supporting dozens of hostages who remain captive after being kidnapped during a Hamas terror attack on Israel in October 2023.

The hostage-taking sparked a brutal Israeli military response that is still raging in Gaza and Lebanon and has killed more than 40,000 Palestinians, according to media reports.

In a letter sent to all students and their families on Thursday, the university said it was also investigating pro-Palestinian pamphlets containing graphic wartime images that had been widely distributed among students living in at least three different dormitories over the past few weeks. , without prior approval from the campus administration, in violation of university policy.

“To be clear, incidents targeting any student because of their race, national origin and/or religion are prohibited by university policy,” wrote Vice President for Student Life Angela Chong, associate vice president and chief academic officer of Civil Rights Nicole Komisiong and Associate Vice President for Student Services Michael Griffel, in a note to families. “Changing photos, painting swastikas, and using offensive images and epithets based on race and religion violate the university’s non-discrimination policy.”

About 5,000 students live in University of Oregon dormitories.

Like many other college campuses across the country, the University of Oregon was home to violent protests over the Israel-Hamas war last spring. Protesters camped out for nearly a month in a central block on campus before negotiating a deal with university officials, including increased scholarships for Gazan students and additional Palestinian-focused education proposals.

The representatives of the university did not meet the requirements for financial and academic withdrawal from Israel. But students did gain representation on a Faculty Senate task force assembled to review the school’s investment decisions for social justice implications.

—Julia Silverman covers education for The Oregonian/OregonLive. Contact her by email at [email protected]