Community Update

Thursday, May 27, 2021

Dear Drexel Community, 

At this difficult time for the Jewish community,  I want to share an update on how Drexel Hillel, our Jewish student leaders, and our Drexel administration are responding to the hostile climate Jewish students are experiencing on campus and online. 

The most recent conflict between Israel and Hamas has elevated the amount of hate speech online and emboldened individuals to defile our campus with antisemitic acts. Facing antisemitism from their peers online and in their places of residence, students have reported feeling anxious, confused, overwhelmed and unsafe. 

In response to current events, Hillel has hosted four gatherings to provide emotional support for students and to help student leaders formulate proactive responses to improving our campus climate. In order to ensure the continued safety of the Perelman Center, Drexel University police have enhanced patrols at the building. Looking forward, we are working with the ADL to bring their Words to Action training back to campus this fall, providing Jewish students with access to the tools and skills necessary to confront antisemitism in our campus community. 

Our University administration issued a statement condemning the swastikas found on campus and continues to investigate all reported incidents of antisemitism on campus and between members of the Drexel community online.  We urge students who need to report an incident, or who have information about any incidents, to share that information with the Office of Equality and Diversity (oed@drexel.edu). Hillel staff and student leaders are also working with the University administration to discuss broader measures the University can take to proactively improve climate and prevent future incidents of antisemitism. 

Below you will find a statement from the Jewish Student Association Board (the student board of Drexel Hillel). We are tremendously proud of our student leaders who are courageously raising their voices to combat hate and build a more inclusive community on campus.  Our students are also actively planning campus gatherings to further these efforts and we look forward to sharing information about that work as it is available.

With Blessings, 

Rabbi Isabel

Please click here if you are unable to view the statement below.