Dear fellow members of the Columbia community:
I write to express my deep concern about the recent increase in antisemitic violence in New York and in cities around the country. These attacks are an abomination. We reject antisemitism and the division and fear that perpetrators of these hate crimes seek to sow to disrupt the fabric of our shared humanity.
We deal with a lot of hard issues at Columbia, issues that divide us and provoke robust debate. But some issues are not hard, and this is one of them: Violent physical attacks and harassment of people because of their religious, racial, national, or ethnic identity are never acceptable, whether directed against people who are Jewish or Palestinian or anyone else.
As hate crimes are being documented at historic high levels, we redouble our commitment to creating a community that respects the fundamental dignity and human rights of all our members and that, most emphatically, rejects all forms of bigotry. If you, or someone you know, experiences bias, we encourage you to report it to the Office of Equal Opportunity and Affirmative Action or to contact your Dean of Students.
Sincerely,
Lee C. Bollinger
