MSU investigating after recent antisemitic incidents in East Lansing

A string of antisemitic incidents occurred during the first weeks of September in East Lansing, according to a statement from the Michael and Elaine Serling Institute for Jewish Studies and Modern Israel.

The statement, first reported by The State News, mentions three incidents.

First, an individual joined a biology class group chat with a Nazi swastika as their profile picture and told others that they study biology to show “Jews are scum.” Students denounced the user and removed them from the chat. One student told the class's professor and several others, including the Serling Institute, about the incident.

In another incident, an individual with the same username made antisemitic comments in a local apartment complex’s group chat, posting “Shut the hell up Jew boy” to a resident. According to the statement, other participants asked the perpetrator to leave the chat, who then replied, “This is why you don’t trust Jews.”

MSU Police and Public Safety spokesperson Chris Rozman said the department is aware of both chat threads, and an investigation is ongoing. The Serling statement said MSU is trying to discern whether or not the perpetrator or perpetrators are part of the campus community.

"Investigators are currently following up on all available leads and are in touch with people who were impacted by the incident and the case remains an active police investigation," spokesperson Chris Rozman said in an email.

The third incident took place at MSU’s Rock, a symbol of campus pride that’s often painted to commemorate notable occasions or convey political messages. To remember the 20th anniversary of 9/11, a campus student organization had painted an American flag on the rock, with the words “Never Forget” and the number of victims lost in the attacks.

Over that weekend, someone spray-painted the word “Israel” over the U.S. flag, and painted over the word “never."

According to the statement, the act invokes a conspiracy theory that Israel was behind the 9/11 attacks — a recent iteration of the antisemitic trope that Jewish people control world events.

The Serling Institute said MSU students have shared more than 75 antisemitic incidents "in the last several years," including verbal attacks and destruction of property. The Serling Institute supports an interdisciplinary Jewish studies program at MSU.

According to the Anti-Defamation League, antisemitic incidents across Michigan rose to 51 last year — up from 42 in 2019, which was double that of the prior year.

Jordan Robinson, an MSU senior who represents the Jewish Student Union, said he wishes more of his fellow students would show support to him and his Jewish peers.

"We want people to recognize that antisemitism is a huge issue on college campuses and it's only getting worse," Robinson said. "I think if leaders across campus and even just general students would take the time to meet with us, it would go a huge way in showing their support."

Contact reporter Jared Weber at 517-582-3937 or jtweber@lsj.com.