During tense demonstrations at the University of Southern California over the Gaza war, officials discovered swastikas painted on campus fences.
“Obviously, it was drawn there simply to incite more anger at such a painful time for our community,” USC President Carol Folt wrote in a statement on Instagram. “I condemn any anti-Semitic symbols or any form of hate speech directed at anyone.”
Folt said the swastika was removed hours after the incident was reported to campus officials on Tuesday afternoon — the same day she met again with student organizers who are demanding that the university abandon any financial ties to Israel .
The swastika was discovered around 3 p.m. Tuesday on a brick pillar that is part of the USC campus boundary fence on Vermont Avenue, said David Carlisle, USC associate director of public safety. He said the symbol appeared to be drawn with a black permanent marker.
He said UCS’s public safety team documented the incident as an act of vandalism before turning the case over to the Los Angeles Police Department. He said no arrests have been made in the ongoing investigation, but noted there was no video evidence of the location.
USC’s Hillel Center for Jewish Life said it was disturbed to find such symbols of anti-Semitism on campus.
“It is deeply saddening to see this clear symbol of Jewish hatred on our campus,” Hillel wrote in a statement. “This kind of hostility and hatred will not be tolerated at USC.”
After more than a week of protests at USC and campuses across the country over Israel’s war with Hamas, access to the USC campus remains limited to students, faculty, staff and registered visitors.
Demonstrations at USC remained peaceful for days after the Los Angeles Police Department surrounded campus demonstrators and arrested nearly 100 people.
“We are still monitoring demonstrations on campus and patrolling the perimeter of campus to ensure our access restrictions are enforced,” Carlisle said.
