A University of Massachusetts Amherst student has been arrested for allegedly spitting on an Israeli flag and punching a Jewish student. The incident took place late last week at the end of a vigil.
The student, who remains unnamed, allegedly attacked their peer at an event where empty seats were set up at a Shabbat table. The seats were meant to represent the people who are being held hostage by Hamas terrorists following the attack on Israel on October 7.
The student has been released on bail, but is not allowed to return to campus, Interim Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs and Campus Life Shelly Perdomo-Ahmed and Assistant Vice Chancellor and Chief of Police Tyrone Parham said, according to New York Post. “What this student is accused of is reprehensible, illegal, and unacceptable,” the two school leaders said in a joint statement. “Let us be clear, these were the actions of an individual who did not speak for nor act on behalf of a group or anyone other them themselves.”
What did the student do?
According to UMass Hillel, “Toward the end of the event, a student approached the gathering and walked through the crowd, aggressively giving people the middle finger. After the event had concluded and event security had left, the same student returned to the site of the event and punched a Jewish student holding an Israeli flag, then took the flag and spit on it.”
{{/usCountry}}According to UMass Hillel, “Toward the end of the event, a student approached the gathering and walked through the crowd, aggressively giving people the middle finger. After the event had concluded and event security had left, the same student returned to the site of the event and punched a Jewish student holding an Israeli flag, then took the flag and spit on it.”
{{/usCountry}}A Hillel staff member had to eventually step in to bring the situation under control. UMass staff witnessed the incident, and a police report was filed, which led to the individual’s arrest.
“UMass Hillel continues to maintain an active line of communication with the UMPD, Amherst Police, the UMass administration, and partners at the Secure Communities Network. While there is no indication of any ongoing security threat, Hillel will continue to maintain increased security out of an abundance of caution, and as always, we encourage students at this time to follow common sense best practices such as walking in groups at night and not engaging in counterprotest activities,” it continued.
It added that that the “vast majority of students, staff, and faculty at UMass who believe there is no place for antisemitism or any type of hate on campus and who seek a healthy, caring campus community must now double down on efforts to come together across differences to embody the best values and mission of our shared campus community.”
‘Antisemitism, Islamophobia, or any form of bigotry have no place in our community’
Meanwhile, school officials said in a message to students, in part, “What this student is accused of is reprehensible, illegal, and unacceptable. Let us be clear, these were the actions of an individual who did not speak for nor act on behalf of a group or anyone other than themselves. Peaceful advocacy and protest must and will be protected on our campus.”
“Antisemitism, Islamophobia, or any form of bigotry have no place in our community, and we are committed to ensuring that our community’s engagement with opposing viewpoints is maintained in a respectful manner,” they added.