A top U.S. art school is investigating an act of anti-Semitism on campus that may make some stomachs turn. <\/p>\n
A swastika drawn in human waste was recently discovered in a gender-neutral bathroom in a dormitory at the Rhode Island School of Design. <\/p>\n
This level of disrespect and vitriol is completely unacceptable and RISD Public Safety is investigating this isolated incident as both an act of vandalism and potentially a crime of hate, Jaime Marland, director of RISD public relations, said in a statement to The Huffington Post. <\/p>\n
Marland added that college authorities held a community meeting with the affected dormitory floor and are encouraging anyone with information about the incident to come forward. <\/p>\n
We are deeply committed to providing a safe and supportive campus environment for our students and do not tolerate discrimination of any kind, she told HuffPost. <\/p>\n
Its unclear whether the anti-Semitic incident was also aimed at LGBT students, given the national debate over trans students access to restrooms that match their gender identities. <\/p>\n
Brown RISD Hillel, a Jewish campus organization,said it was saddened and angeredby what had happened. <\/p>\n
To say we condemn the RISD graffiti is too mild and obvious a statement, said Rabbi Michelle T. Dardashti, an associate chaplain at the college. <\/p>\n
Students of Jewish history understand that deadly anti-Semitism has been cyclical, thus current manifestations (in the forms of graffiti, bomb threats, cemetery vandalism and white-supremacist and alt right rhetoric) are hard to write off as trivial or innocuous, Dardashti said in an email to HuffPost. <\/p>\n
Students told NBC 10that the swastika was just the latest of several feces-related acts of vandalism that have occurred on campus. <\/p>\n
There have people using their own fecal matter in a harmful way in the bathrooms, in the showers, all over the bathroom, one student said. <\/p>\n
The incident comes a time when the U.S. is witnessing a wave of anti-Semitism. Eleven Jewish community centers received bomb threats on Monday, forcing evacuations in ten states. After strong urging by press and fellow politicians, President Donald Trump finallydenounced anti-Semitism on Tuesday. <\/p>\n
The anti-Semitic threats targeting our Jewish community and Jewish community centers are horrible and painful and a very sad reminder of the work that must be done to root out hate and prejudice and evil, Trump said. <\/p>\n
The Simon Wiesenthal Center, a leading Jewish human rights organization, has called on Attorney General Jeff Sessions to create a special task force to investigate threats targeting Jewish community centers around the nation. <\/p>\n
This story has been updated with comment from Rabbi Michelle T. Dardashti. <\/p>\n
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