Indiana University police are investigating antisemitic messages posted to an anonymous message board used by Greek life students.
Greek Rank is a privately owned company that has campus specific community groups that students use to post sorority and fraternity rankings, upcoming parties and other community announcements.
A Greek Rank user using the name “the truth” posted a message Sunday morning referencing sexual assaults it alleges were committed by members of Alpha Epsilon Pi, a Jewish fraternity. The post used offensive language towards IU’s Jewish community, warning women to stay away from “dangerous humans,” and asserting a need to “get em [sic] off our campus.”
IU Hillel Director, Rabbi Sue Silberberg says that these allegations and racist remarks are an excuse to “bring out antisemitism.”
“If it happened at any other house with white Christian men, it wouldn’t have happened at all,” she said Monday.
Campus police are investigating to determine the source of the posts and have promised “swift repercussions” to any individuals involved Silberberg says.
"We are aware of the disgusting, hate-filled antisemitic posts on the Greek Rank website—an external, independent site—that named several, Greek-letter organizations on our campus. This attempt to anonymously spread hate is cowardly, horrific, and simply unacceptable in the IU community," wrote new IU Provost Rahul Shrivastav in an email to students. "We have contacted the site to ask for the messages to be taken down immediately. A police investigation is underway, and the person or people who made these posts who can be identified will be held accountable."
Greek Rank removed the post after 5:00 p.m. on Monday. Before posting to the site, a note appears above the submission window warning users from offensive content saying, “Before you type: Remember, do not post names, initials or any derogatory content.”
Greek Rank did not respond to a request for comment.
IU Student Government responded to the incident Monday night by voting to adopt the International Holocaust Remembrance Association definition of antisemitism.
This event is just the latest in a series of antisemitic incidents on IU’s Bloomington campus this school year. Hillel started an Antisemitism Prevention Task Force last fall in response to several incidents last semester, including mezuzahs being removed from Jewish students’ doors, antisemitic hazing in residence halls, students hailing Hitler, and several other incidents, Ben Novorr Coordinator of Student Life at Hillel said last month. Novorr said there has been a "startling uptick" in antisemitic incidents this year.
The Task Force is now a student group on campus focused on preventing antisemitism by educating the IU community about the Holocaust and harmful stereotypes. The team of around 25 Jewish and non-Jewish students met Monday night to draft a statement regarding the incident.
The team plans to distribute education modules for IU Greek houses in the coming weeks and months.
