On Saturday, a student at New York City’s New School tweeted a picture of a dorm-room door that had been defaced with a swastika. “We woke up to this on our door, in a dorm at @TheNewSchool, where 3 Jewish women live,” tweeted Sam Lichtenstein.
Later that afternoon, New School president David Van Zandt issued a statement about the defacement of four dorm-room doors, which he followed up with a second statement on Sunday.
“We do not accept this illegal, inflammatory, and hurtful influence on our campus,” Van Zandt wrote, adding that the college is co-operating fully with the NYPD on an investigation. “Any attempt to discriminate, instill fear in or intimidate our students will result in serious and swift consequences both from the NYPD and The New School.” Additionally, Van Zandt has “instructed senior leadership to increase security on campus,” and has asked faculty members and staffers to be aware of potential problems.
Mayor Bill de Blasio, who has spoken out against the Trump administration’s stance on immigration, health care, and reproductive rights, tweeted his support of the New School and decried the hate speech. Governor Andrew Cuomo has announced two separate investigations into alleged hate crimes at SUNY Geneseo and in Wellsville, New York.
The Southern Poverty Law Center released a statement Friday that there had been “201 incidents of election-related harassment and intimidation” since Tuesday’s election. It is one of many worthy nonprofits people have been donating to in the wake of Trump’s win.
