Fountain Walker, vice president for global campus safety at New York University, denounced the Aug. 31 theft of a mezuzah from a student’s room on campus.
“I am sure I speak for the entire university community when I express my outrage and condemnation of this disgraceful, antisemitic misconduct,” he stated on Tuesday. “Theft or vandalism of religious objects, symbols and spaces is utterly at odds with our university’s values and a gross violation of our rules, and is being treated accordingly.”
Walker added that NYU has “zero tolerance for antisemitism and other acts of hate” and takes “this offense very seriously, and it is being vigorously investigated.”
NYU reported the theft to the New York City Police Department “as an antisemitic hate crime” and to the school’s Title VI coordinator, according to Walker.
The school vice president added that the suspect is “a female with light complexion and dark hair wearing brown clothing.”
“We are calling on anyone who has knowledge of this matter to come forward promptly,” he said. “It would be even better if the perpetrator came forward on their own accord.”
Fall semester classes at NYU started on Tuesday.
The university said it reached a confidential settlement on July 9, 2024, with three students who alleged that NYU was indifferent to Jew-hatred on campus.
“As a result of the agreement, NYU is creating a new Title VI coordinator position, among the first major universities in the country to do so,” it stated at the time. “Meant to parallel the responsibilities of the Title IX coordinator, who oversees university-wide compliance with sex and gender-related discrimination laws, the Title VI coordinator will oversee compliance with Title VI, including ensuring that NYU responds adequately and consistently to allegations of discrimination and harassment based on all protected traits.”
The university said at the time that it “committed to take groundbreaking measures to address antisemitism, including in the wake of the Oct. 7, 2023, terrorist attack and ensuing violence in the Middle East.”
NYU said in 2024 that it would implement mandatory training, as well as “dedicate additional academic resources and opportunities that will include a focus on the study of antisemitism and Hebrew and Judaic studies,” and that it would “strengthen NYU’s existing relationship with Tel Aviv University.”
The Trump administration hasn’t targeted NYU this year as part of its response to Jew-hatred on campuses.
