Proliferation of bias incidents on campus prompt issuance of early bias report

Prompted by the excessive amount of reported bias incidents on campus since the beginning of the fall, the Bias Intervention Program is issuing a bias report today instead of the usual report at the end of the academic school year in the spring.

"We felt [these bias incidents] were serious events and we needed to inform the community now," said Associate Dean of Students and Bias Response Team member Marisel P?©rez. "We want to make sure people see the impact -- see the list. It should affect them more when they see a list of incidents."

All thirteen bias incidents listed on the report, which appears as a full-page advertisement in today's Daily, were committed against the gay and Jewish communities at Tufts.

The university's first reported bias incident occurred on the third day of classes. Nine of the reported incidents took place in residence halls. Six occurred in the freshmen-only Tilton Hall, one of which was committed by a resident of Haskell. One incident was reported in Carmichael and two were reported in South.

"There were less attacks on the Jewish community last year but the queer community has always been targeted," Peer Educator Julia Karol, as senior, said.

Tufts Transgender, Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual Collective (TTLGBC) director Dona Yarbrough agreed: "It's a constant -- over half of the reported incidents are about sexual orientation. The word 'fag' on a bathroom wall is so common it's unremarkable. Bias towards the queer community is still very acceptable -- they are acceptable to target."

However Yarbrough was quick to point out that other incidents of bias exist even though they may not have been reported.

"It's important to say that these are the incidents that are reported," she said. Yarbrough cited the example of students of color, who are often victims of bias that isn't as tangible as the reported incidents.

Besides two incidents of graffiti in Tilton Hall, one of which included a swastika sprayed in shaving cream, the bias incidents against the Jewish community at the University took place during the holiday of Sukkot.

"There was a serious connection of two incidents this year where for the first time in ten to 15 years, the Sukkahs were knocked down," said Rabbi Jeffrey Summit, Executive Director of the Hillel Foundation at Tufts.

The Sukkahs, wooden hut-like structures used to commemorate the Jewish exodus from Egypt, were placed on the academic quad near the cannon and between Hillel and Wren Hall. Both Sukkahs had prominent signs identifying their purpose.

"Two anonymous students observed three white males ripping down the Sukkah [near the cannon]. The witnesses did not know if they were students or not. One of the [perpetrators] shouted something negative or pejorative at the witnesses," Summit said.

This first Sukkah was torn down on Oct. 12. Later that week, the Sukkah behind Hillel was discovered in a similar state. Though there were no witnesses this time, Summit said there was a boot mark on the structure. "It was clearly knocked down," he said.

Members of the Bias Team agree with Summit's assessment. "The way [the second Sukkah came down and given the fact that the first one had eyewitnesses, we believe that that was enough [to confirm vandalism]," said P?©rez. "We could've made a mistake but if [the Sukkah] withstood a strong storm that week, then how could it have fallen otherwise?"

Either way, police are still investigating the incident.

"We don't know if [the perpetrators] were targeting Jews or if they were just vandalizing," Summit said. "But it's extremely important to be vigilant about these anti-Semitic incidents. Anti-Semitism is on the rise in the United States and we have to take these incidents very seriously. My sincere hope is that these anti-Semitic acts were not committed by any member of the Tufts community. Nevertheless, the incidents underscore how much work we have left to do."

Tufts is unique among schools in reporting bias incidents. Peer Educator Judith Neufeld, a junior, said that it is hard to estimate the amount of bias at Tufts in comparison with other schools given that "most schools don't have a program like ours so we can't really know."

"Schools for the most part publish outcomes of incidents and disciplinary measures, but very few publish bias incidents," P?©rez said.

Karol said that the increase of reported incidents could be due to the increased perception of Bias Intervention on campus. "Maybe people are reporting [bias incidents] more because we've taught them to," said Karol.

The Bias Prevention Program is made up of the Bias Response Team, the administrative response to incidents of bias and reporting to the Dean of Students office, and the Peer Educator Group, the undergraduate program established a year and a half ago that coordinates student response to the incidents.

This past spring the Peer Educators held a 'Speak Out, Stop Hate' rally. The Peer Educators have also met with residents of South Hall, where a great number of the bias incidents last school year took place, talked at the two first-year dorms, and helped train Resident Assistants as to how to respond to reports of bias.

"We're asked a lot, 'How are you going to catch the person [who committed the act of bias]?' We probably won't, but the focus is less on the perpetrator and more on the community," Karol said.

"We want people to feel what others feel. Everyone needs to see the importance of words -- because they're not just words," P?©rez said. "This is work where everyone needs to be involved. We want people to know there's always something you can do, someone you can talk to."

Neufeld stressed the Bias Intervention Program's credo: "It's never a joke and it's never funny. We need to respect one another."