Swastikas drawn on white boards in Sellery Hall
They were not drawn by UW students
A hate and bias incident is currently being handled by UW-Madison officials after swastikas were found on three dorm room doors in Sellery Hall.
According to Meredith McGlone, UW-Madison spokeswoman, the people responsible for the drawings are not UW-Madison students. They were students visiting from another college and allegedly choose the doors randomly.
McGlone said the officials will contact the students’ college about the incident.
This is not the first act of antisemitism to occur on the UW-Madison campus.
In January, a student was punished for posting photos of Hitler and swastikas on a Jewish student’s door in Sellery Hall.
Another issue of hate and bias occured in March when a student pushed and spat on a group of black students. This incident motivated the victims to share their experiences on twitter and start #TheRealUW movement.
According to the UW-Madison Hate and Bias incident Report, there were 21 reported incidents of hate and bias during the 2015-2016 school year.
Joshua Johnson, Director of the Multicultural Student Center, said many incidents go unreported.
The Hate and Bias Committee has worked hard to ensure the reporting process is as easy as possible, but the process can still be taxing because student’s have to face an incident that can be painful to remember Johnson said.
The university is taking steps to create a more inclusive environment. The cultural competency program 1000 students participated in this fall is one example of this.
Johnson applauds the steps the university is taking to create a more inclusive enviornment, but he encourages students to take a stand as well.
“If we really want things to change on this campus, people have to take responsibility for their own communities,” Johnson said.