Two students at Syracuse University in upstate New York have been arrested and charged with a hate crime after allegedly throwing a bag of pork into a Jewish fraternity house at the school. To make matters worse, this happened while people were at the house to observe Rosh Hashanah.
Several years ago, this might have been seen as a cruel prank, but in our current environment, it’s much more serious.
NBC News reports:
Syracuse students accused of hate crime after pork was thrown into Jewish frat houseTwo Syracuse University students have been charged with burglary as a hate crime after one of them was alleged to have thrown a bag of pork into a Jewish fraternity house as people gathered to observe Rosh Hashanah, police said Wednesday.The two 18-year-olds were also charged with one count each of criminal nuisance in the incident at the Zeta Beta Tau house about 5:45 p.m. Tuesday, police in Syracuse, New York, said.Allen Groves, the university’s chief student experience officer, called it a “deeply troubling incident” in a message to the campus community Tuesday night.“Tonight’s incident as reported to us is abhorrent, shocking to the conscience and violates our core value of being a place that is truly welcoming to all,” he said. “It will not be tolerated at Syracuse University.”One of the accused students entered the frat house and threw the bag of pork inside while the second drove the vehicle that they then used to flee, Groves said. Police arrested both soon afterward, he said…The bag of pork was thrown into the fraternity house as members were eating dinner on the first night of Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year, which is observed over two days. It is the beginning of the High Holidays.
Syracuse.com has a statement from Onondaga County District Attorney William Fitzpatrick:
Fitzpatrick said the attack is being charged as a hate crime because it happened on the Jewish High Holy Day of Rosh Hashanah, the food thrown was pork and ZBT is known as a Jewish fraternity.“This incident is not a foolish college prank and will not be treated as such,” Fitzpatrick said.” “It will be treated for what it is, a crime directed against a group of Jewish students enjoying a celebratory dinner and seemingly secure in their residence.”The students – Samuel Patten and Kyle Anderson, who are both 18 years old – were arraigned this morning in Syracuse City Court.They are currently being held in the Justice Center Jail, according to county jail records. Their bail was set at $1500 by Judge Derrek Thomas, according to digital court records.
This is the full statement from Chief Student Experience Officer Allen Groves:
Dear Students, Faculty and Staff:I write to inform you of a deeply troubling incident that happened in our community tonight. At approximately 6 p.m., brothers of the Zeta Beta Tau fraternity were gathered in their chapter house to celebrate the first night of Rosh Hashanah when a student, who is not part of the fraternity, reportedly entered the fraternity house and threw meat, believed to be pork, on the floor while fraternity members were eating a dinner to celebrate this important religious holiday for the Jewish community. The student then fled in a car driven by a second student. Both were quickly apprehended by the Department of Public Safety (DPS) and taken into custody by the Syracuse Police Department (SPD). I am grateful to DPS for their swift action and to SPD for their partnership in helping us keep our community safe.A decision on specific criminal charges will be made by local authorities in the coming days, including whether to charge it as an antisemitic hate crime. In addition, the students involved have been referred to Community Standards pursuant to our Student Conduct Code, and pending the outcome of an investigation, will face appropriate disciplinary action through our established procedures.Tonight’s incident as reported to us is abhorrent, shocking to the conscience and violates our core value of being a place that is truly welcoming to all. It will not be tolerated at Syracuse University.
Featured image via YouTube.
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